Dancing in the Dark
by financebabe
Summary: Stephanie is given an assignment by Ranger to stop the flow of a dangerous drug in Trenton. Little did she know the most difficult part of the job would be having to partner with a Merry Man.
1. Rock On

_As we begin a new story, I have to remind us all that none of these characters are mine. JE created them and even if I disagree with how they've been behaving lately, they still technically belong to her._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) here we go again. Thanks so much for signing on to beta another story for me._

**Chapter 1 – Rock On**

It was hot, too dammed hot!

The skips weren't skipping, I was nearly broke after dropping off my rent check, and Connie didn't have anyone else for me to go after to have grocery money. Not that I'd had the energy to go after anybody in this heat, but still, it would be nice to know I could afford a pint of Ben and Jerry's to help cool off with.

I was debating going to my parent's house to mooch lunch and was struggling to come up with the proper motivation to get up off the couch when I heard the unmistakable sound of my front door locks being picked.

If I hadn't been so sticky that getting of the couch was difficult I might have gotten up just to surprise the person on the other side of lock picking tool, but that sounded like more effort than it was worth. If it was someone here to kidnap me, I might just go along with them willingly if they'd promise me air conditioning in whatever basement they were planning on locking me in.

Heck, my kidnappers in the past had fed me a little so this would kill two birds with one stone. I wonder where that saying came from. At what point in history were stones in such short demand that a colloquialism was invented to encourage people to try and be good stewards of the few precious bird killing rocks they had. I shook my head to try and clear out such ridiculous thoughts and forced my eyes open only to be face to face with a smiling Ranger. Be still my heart. There is nothing on this earth as good looking as Ranger with a smile on his face and brown grocery bag in his hand.

"What were you thinking about?" Ranger asked with his amused face only growing.

"The national debt," I lied, refusing to admit to my long internal dialogue about birds and stones.

He laughed at my feeble attempt at a distraction and instead held out his hand to pull me up.

When I stood he pulled me into the kitchen and began to unpack some food from the bag he had been carrying. I rolled my eyes at the bag of carrots he was putting the refrigerator but when I glanced over to Rex I figured he would at least have a steady stream of nutrition for a few days this way.

There were some other fruits and vegetables, making me wonder if Ranger understood this wasn't a part of my food pyramid at all. He opened the freezer and pulled out two pints of ice cream and a couple of Stouffer's frozen macaroni and cheese meals, reminding me he knew me after all. Then he ended with a jar of peanut butter and a container of olives which he laid across his arm like an expensive bottle of wine in a fancy restaurant. I gave it a cursory glance trying to hide my excitement over the fact that I wouldn't be forced into dinner at my parent's house for a few days at least.

When he finished he folded up the bag and sat it on my recycling bin which had only empty beer bottles and crushed Coke cans in it before turning back to me with all traces of humor gone.

I had a sinking suspicion I wasn't going to like whatever he was about to say. "Do you have a minute to talk?" He asked.

I went back to the den and sat on the couch, waiting as he positioned himself beside me. "I have a job that I need some help with, and you are the only person that can do it."

I relaxed right away. Of course I would help him, he had to know that. Plus, it would give me a little income as Ranger always paid me well no matter how miniscule my contribution to a project so I had hope of being able to keep Rex and I both in food for the foreseeable future. Before I could get too excited Ranger spoke again.

"It is a dangerous job and it might take a few weeks or a few months; there is no way to tell. So I would understand completely if you don't want to do it," he warned me giving me an out if I wanted one.

I could see something on his face that I couldn't pinpoint and it made me nervous. It was almost like he wanted me to turn this down, but he had no other way to do it if I declined to help him. I guess that put him between a rock and a hard place. There I go with the damn rock analogies. When the English idioms were being invented, was there really nothing more interesting than rocks for people to talk about? I shook my head to clear it once more before saying, "You know I'd help you in anyway I can. Why don't you tell me what would be involved."

He leaned forward and picked up a folder from my coffee table that hadn't been there when I laid down earlier. I guess it came in with the food. He opened it and pulled out a stack of pictures of girls whose faces were bruised as though they'd taken a few punches. But the worst part of their appearance was the unfocused look in their eyes. "What's wrong with them?" I asked, feeling the pain of the young girls and instantly wanting to do something to help them.

"They were all given a new drug on the market referred to X-23. It is a temporary neurotransmitter than blocks the messages from the optic nerve to the brain making the victim blind for a period of time. These girls made the mistake of trying to fight back, despite their inability to see, and the person that drugged them decided to teach them a lesson," he explained with the tone of his voice indicating how angry the idea of the girls being beaten for trying to defend themselves made him.

"Are they alright now?" I asked, continuing to flip through the stack.

"Most of them are," he informed me quickly. "But the last two put up such a fight that they were given multiple doses and their vision has not returned. Doctors are unsure if they will ever recover their sight.

I swallowed hard thinking about how I would panic if I were ever to be without my vision. "How can I help?"

Ranger seemed sad at my question, which didn't make sense considering I was agreeing to work with him and it seemed like he needed my assistance. "All of these cases occurred in Miami. The RangeMan office there had been working with the DEA to round up the people responsible for the drug's creation and distribution. We were able to locate a couple of distributors who were from nice neighborhoods with otherwise clean records. The only thing they shared was an association with a dance studio."

I nodded so he would keep going. "It seems the studio was owned by a woman whose brother is suspected of selling this drug and he was using her students to distribute the substance. The people he prayed on were young, newly established in relationships, and in need of some fast cash to get on their feet."

"So do you need me to go to Miami?" I wondered, trying to figure out how I was going to fit into this.

He shook his head no. "A few months ago, the woman who owed the studio in Miami opened another location in Trenton. It is such a strange city for her to have selected since our initial intel doesn't show any family connections or other reasons to have picked this area, so we have to assume she is doing it as a front for her brother's drug operation."

That was a relief. If I thought I was hot here, Miami would take my sweating to a whole new level. "Alright, so I can stay in Trenton to help. Now what do I need to do?"

"I need for you to take some dance lessons at her studio and see if you can get any information about the operation from here," he began.

"What kind of dance are we talking about?" I asked, blanching at the idea of putting on a tutu for any amount of money.

"Ballroom," he said pulling out a brochure for a new dance studio not that far away from the Burg.

I looked at the couples gliding across the floor and envied them their grace. Sure, I could dance at a club and even knew a few steps that the guys had taught me for some Latin dances, but I couldn't imagine me in an elegant dress waltzing in someone's arms. Then the obvious issue hit me, "But wouldn't I need a partner to take ballroom dance lessons?"

Ranger's face contorted into a scowl at the mention of a partner. "All the people used to distribute the drugs were in new relationships where the couple needed some money under the table to make ends meet. So not only do you need someone to go to the studio with you, but it's going to have to look like you and this guy are in a relationship."

"Who do you have in mind for that role?" I asked, secretly hoping it would be him. We had played a couple before and even though it was hell on my hormones and my heart, it was still an easy thing to do.

Once more he reached into that mystery folder and pulled out a list of RangeMan employees that he gave me. "You will need to pick your partner from this list."

I glanced at it quickly and couldn't help but notice the absence of certain names. "You aren't on here," I stated the obvious.

Ranger smiled. "No, I'm not on there. I can't pose as a person in need of money to make ends meet because I'm too well known in certain circles as the owner of a successful security company."

I looked back down and grasped at another straw, "Tank, Lester and Bobby are all missing too."

Ranger's smile grew, almost saying he liked the way my mind went to the people he trusted the most.

"There is a good chance I'll have to leave the country while you're working on this assignment, which means Tank will be in charge of running RangeMan. I don't think he can balance that responsibility and maintaining a cover," he explained.

"That explains Tank, but what about Lester and Bobby?" I pushed, figuring Les and I could pull off a happy couple pretty easily.

"I talked to them about it, and either of them would do it if you really wanted them to, but they both thought you should pick someone else. For one, you will need them to back you up if you are able to dig up any information and for another, the relationship is going to have to be believable…" he stopped talking then, leaving me to draw my own conclusion.

"Wait, just how believable are we talking about?" I asked him beginning to see why he might have been so worried about asking me to do this job.

"If they believe your cover and believe you might make a good distributor, then they are going to check your story completely. You will need to be seen spending nights together, going out on dates, and he's going to have to be perceived by the Burg as your boyfriend. To everyone except the core team at RangeMan, whoever you pick would have to be your boyfriend. You can't tell Lula, or Mary Lou, or even your mother the truth because all the usual gossip sources would need to be on the same page." He rubbed his eyes when he said this part, as though it was hurting him to put this kind of pressure on me.

"If I'm able to do this, and we somehow manage to prove they are using this studio as a front to run this drug, then will the people responsible for hurting these girls be arrested?" I needed to be sure someone was going to pay for what those women had suffered.

Ranger looked at me with his damn blank face in place, that stone cold expression that I couldn't read at all. Damn, there I go with the rock analogies again. Apparently the heat was beginning to get to me. I didn't usually get stuck on words like this.

His expression eventually softened and he said, "I'm proud of you, Babe."

Well that settled it. I was definitely going to do this. Despite the whispers that would be circulating about me in the Burg and the fact that most everybody at work was going to assume I was sleeping with one of the Merry Men, the fact that Ranger was proud of me was all it took to insure I was signing up for duty until the job was done. It didn't matter how many walls I built to hide behind he had a way of scaling them that beat anything I'd ever seen.

"What do I need to do?" I asked, trying to clear my head in order to absorb all the information.

"First you need to select a partner," he pointed to the list of RangeMan staff once more.

"But I don't know much about these guys," I pointed out, hoping he would give me some hints. Instead he stood up and went to the front door to pick up a satchel that he'd dropped there on his way in.

He unclasped the front and pulled out a thick stack of manila folders, sitting them on the coffee table. "Here is some information on each of them for you to review and study. I need you to look them over today and pick your guy by tonight so I can brief them and verify that they are willing to take this on."

I glanced at the list again trying to come up with who I knew the best. "Cal's not on this list."

Ranger chuckled and the sound was so sweet I didn't even mind that he was obviously laughing at me. "No, I think you'd have a hard time pulling off the flaming skull as a fan of ballroom dancing."

"How are any of these guys going to pull off ballroom dancing?" I pointed out, trying to picture shy Hal holding me in his arms and leading me across the floor.

"You'd be surprised," he quickly prevented my preconceived notions from running lose and nixing any of the guys as viable candidates.

Then, sensing how I was looking at the list as more of an exclusion tool instead of a list of possibilities he pointed out, "I took Hector off too because of the gang tattoos, and Zero's gone because he's too short to make a believable looking dance partner."

I smiled at his reasons for excluding the guys. "Erik's not on here." I pointed that one out more to see what the reason was than because I wanted him.

"Erik hasn't been in Trenton long enough to have the core team's complete trust for an assignment like this," Ranger surprised me with his answer.

"You mean a long term cover?" I couldn't help but try to figure out what he meant by an assignment like this.

"No," he corrected me. "I mean an assignment where he will be the person responsible for insuring your safety over a period of time, and doing that without taking advantage of the situation or you."

He moved the folders from the coffee table to my lap and took the list from my hands. "Look through these and see if your instincts tell you who would work. I think in this stack you'll find someone that is capable of working with you to get to the bottom of this mystery and preventing a very dangerous drug from reaching the streets of Trenton."

I nodded, realizing how serious this was and trying to take that responsibility to heart. "I'll call you tonight with my top choice."

Ranger ran his finger down the side of my face leaving a wake of tingling flesh. "I'm sorry it can't be you," I admitted.

Ranger stood up and didn't look at me when he replied, "I am too." Then he picked up the empty satchel and added, "More than you know, I'm sorry I can't be the one."

We'd already had the relationship discussion a few months ago and he had basically told me that despite the chemistry between us, he would never allow it to be more than it was now. He said it was because his life was not his own to give to me and despite how he felt, he couldn't allow us to try for something normal knowing it would never happen. At the time it hurt and it forced me to look at my track record with men. I was hit with the truth that I'd not been able to have an honest relationship with one in my life.

After a couple of awkward weeks I realized if anything that honest discussion had strengthened the bond between us. He was more protective than ever and even helped me admit that what was between Joe and I was never going to work and was even detrimental to us both. Unfortunately, Joe hadn't agreed when I tried to explain that to him and I still had occasional run-ins with him around town that got the Burg gossip lines ringing off the hook.

Ranger left with me feeling like his admission was about more than just this case, but I knew what we had together was precious and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Perhaps I should be thankful that we weren't mixing the carefully drawn lines of what we were to each other. We shared the occasional kiss, but it didn't develop into the wild hot ones that we used to sneak in alley at the bond's office. And anytime we were together he managed to touch me in ways that made me feel treasured and appreciated, but never crossing the line of confusing me. We had an indefinable friendship and strangely, that was enough.

After a few more instructions he let himself out and I laughed when I heard the door locking behind him. I looked at the stack of folders and knew I had no choice but to go through them and pick out my pretend boyfriend for at the least the next few weeks. It was a shame this had to be top secret because I could really use the help of the girls right now in looking over the candidates. Realizing I was on my own for this one, I went with my B- Team of friends and dashed to the freezer for a pint of Ben and Jerry's to help me look through the files. If I couldn't have the girls, then my guys would have to pinch hit.

Half way through a pint of Half Baked, I was feeling slightly cooler and had already cut the pile in half. Hoping that Ranger wouldn't ask for my scientific process for picking my partner, I pushed Zip aside within the first page of his background. I just couldn't see Grandma leaving him alone with that nickname.

Hal I had to cut from the deck because he was so painfully quiet. He rarely spoke to me, and when he did it was with a blush on his face. If he had to touch me enough to prove we were a couple, I think he'd have a stroke.

Junior I pulled out too because I'd seen him dancing in a club, and as good as he might look, the man had no rhythm. So despite him being fun to hang out with, I couldn't picture him participating in a dance class.

Caesar I discounted because he always seemed to be angry about something. Never had I seen him let his guard down enough to laugh and joke. I knew he had served in several missions where he was the only man left alive and that kind of tragedy had changed him in ways that I thought would make him too closed off to play the role of doting boyfriend.

That left me with Ram, Bones, and Vince. I probably knew all three of them at equal levels, which wasn't saying much. They could all be funny so I figured getting them to talk to me wouldn't be too hard. I had seen them all dance and knew rhythm wouldn't be an issue. And they had all been around my Grandmother at some point and still lived to talk about it, so that was another point in their favor. And finally, they were all great to look at, so claiming them as my boyfriend certainly wouldn't be a hardship on my part.

I started reading and found tears in my eyes after finishing each of their brief bios. Ranger had included as much personal information as he could about each of the guys. Ram and Vince both came from two parent households and each had a single brother. Ram's brother was in the Navy versus his Army background, but they seemed equally balanced in how they excelled in their careers.

Vince's brother was a computer science guru and wrote logistics programs for all the major shipping vendors in this country, making himself a wealthy man at only thirty five and in essence guaranteeing himself 'perfect son' status in the eyes of his parents.

Bones was raised by his grandmother who was still living but not in good health. It looked like over the last three months he'd taken off five times to visit her because of a different heath crisis each time. I thought about it and decided to pull him from the stack of contenders. I couldn't bear the thought of her getting sick and him feeling like he was shackled to this case and couldn't leave to see her. Until she either recuperated or passed away Bones needed to have the freedom to travel and I couldn't take that away from him despite wanting to get to know him better from reading his file.

That left me with Vince and Ram. I considered flipping a coin but decided that probably wasn't the best way to go about it. Finally I found two small things to tip the scales in Vince's favor. First he had a perfect sibling, so that gave us something in common. Secondly he was Italian, or at least I thought he was. Vincent Corlezzi sounded Italian enough that my dad would accept it.

My stomach was growling loudly as I picked up my phone to call Ranger. It was nearing five o'clock, so I guess my substitution of ice cream for lunch hadn't held me over as well as I'd hoped.

When Ranger picked up I asked if it was a good time to let him know about my pick for a partner and he seemed pleased to know I'd made a decision.

"Who do you want to work with?" He asked.

"I think Vince would make the most sense, but if he can't do it, or if he isn't comfortable, then Ram would be alright as a second choice." I told him.

"Babe, this isn't a beauty pageant. You don't need to have a runner-up," he laughed at my response.

"Maybe not, but I don't like the thought of someone working with me to pull off a relationship only because you forced them to. If he isn't comfortable doing it then don't order him anyway, just talk to Ram instead." I instructed, hoping he would understand what I meant.

"Alright, I'll talk to him and let you know how he takes it. Regardless of who accepts the case, then you'll need to be briefed together in the morning and we'll need to talk about how we can establish your cover quickly. It's going to be important for your role to be established early on when the class starts." I understood what he was staying but had a feeling exactly what that would entail was going to be more complicated than I could comprehend.

"I'll see you around ten tomorrow then," I said quoting the time I usually arrived when I dropped by RangeMan.

"Babe," Ranger replied as though he were in pain. "This needs to be a morning briefing."

"Ten _is_ in the morning," I countered with a hint of whine at the thought of getting up before the sun rose.

"How about eight instead?" He pushed his luck.

"Alright, but I'll expect doughnuts at this meeting if you want me to be not only be there, but be alert enough to listen too," I informed him hoping he'd get the point that I wasn't happy about the early start to my day.

Of course it was air conditioned in the RangeMan offices so at least I'd be cool. Maybe getting up so early wouldn't be a hardship after all.

I heated up a mac and cheese meal from my freezer and happily watched the Yankee's game while eating my less than gourmet dinner. During the commercial break my mind began to run over what Ranger had said would be involved in maintaining the cover of us being a couple. Did he say that we'd have to spend the night together? Did that mean Vince or Ram would be staying here? Would I have to clean? Should I offer to let them have the bed and I'd sleep on the couch? I hated sleeping on the couch because I couldn't stretch out completely. But I knew if I didn't fit there was no way one of the guys would.

Ranger and I hadn't discussed compensation. I never asked how much he'd pay me for any of the jobs I'd done for RangeMan in the past. He'd always just mailed me a very generous check when it was over and I'd happily deposited my money. But this was going to be more than the usual several hours of time that I'd done for him in the past. This could be all day, several days a week, with nights and evenings involved. I'd have to change my routine and lie to my friends and family. When Ranger was here it seemed so easy but now that my mind was wrapping around it fully, this was huge. Could I do this? I was a terrible liar. Everybody could see right through me. What on earth made me think I could pull this off? Ranger had to be desperate to ask me to help, knowing how many different ways I could screw this up.

It was with this type of panicked thoughts that I fell into a fitful sleep where I dreamed that I was rushed to the emergency room because of a head trauma when it was discovered I wasn't who I said I was during a distraction. When the doctor came to my bedside to explain the horrible pain I was feeling in my head, he lit up the x-ray board in the room and put a black and white film of my head pointing to several round objects that he said appeared to be rocks in my head. Great! Now I was dreaming about rocks too. Although I guess having rocks for brains was a better alternative than the way that expression usually went.

When I woke up the next morning I got in a lukewarm shower, hoping to wash off the strange dream and the sweat covering me. I had to pull myself together and get to Haywood on time. Maybe while I was there I should explain to Ranger how he had the wrong person for this job. I couldn't think straight without seeing all the ways this job could go wrong. Hell, between the steam of the shower and the moisture in the air, fixing my hair was out of the question so I just pulled it up into a messy bun to keep it off my neck and hide the frizzy look that would be there by the end of the day.

It was hot, too damned hot!


	2. Still Rocking

_Everyone in this story is a creation of JE's mind, not mine._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234), thank you for your support, encouragement and tireless effort as the beta for this story._

**Chapter 2 – Still Rocking**

_Vince's POV_

I wondered what Ranger had done to get Stephanie to agree to a meeting this early in the morning. When Ella came in with a tray that had coffee and a stack of doughnuts on it, I figured a sweet bribe was what it took.

I still couldn't believe I was sitting here in the boss' office, waiting for a briefing on a new job he needed me to do that would require me to pose as Stephanie's boyfriend. Even more amazing was the idea that Ranger swore she'd picked me for the role from a list he'd given to her. He refused to tell me who else was on the list, but the fact that my ass was in this chair instead of Santos or even Cal was pretty shocking. I knew she was pretty close to both of them.

He'd been pretty tight lipped about the details of what would be involved in the mission itself, but he'd given me more than enough about why were doing it that I knew I'd help no matter what. I'd only been in Trenton for three years but I thought of it as home and stopping the flow of a drug like X-23 was vital to keeping my home safe. There was no doubt that I'd do whatever it took to make this job work.

When Stephanie came in, I stood up like she was some sort of commanding officer and I was snapping to attention. What the hell was wrong with me? Now I had to make a decision about what to do before sitting down. Did I shake her hand or thank her for the opportunity of serving with her? Damn, it's like I was thirteen again trying to get up the courage to pass a note to Cherrie Walker in homeroom. My palms were sweating, which ruled out shaking her hand. No way in hell was I going to let her know how nervous this whole boyfriend thing had me.

Fortunately, Steph's eyes landed on the platter of fat in doughnut form and the fact that either Ranger or I were in the room was completely lost on her temporarily.

After she selected one with chocolate on top and a creamy filling she sat down in the guest chair next to me and treated us to one of her long moans that sounded like it belonged in a porno soundtrack instead of an office. The fact that she wasted sounds like that on food was something I could never understand. It made me wonder what she sounded like in the throws of sex. I couldn't imagine anything that could top this, but if anybody could make a sound designed to make a man hard as rocks, it would be her.

I wonder where that expression came from? Why, when a man was turned on, did we refer to it in terms of how firm it was? You would think we'd want to describe its size more than its rigidity. Maybe the guy that came up with these expressions wasn't well endowed, so he had to come up with something to play on his strengths. Realizing that she was licking the last bit of cream off her fingers I shook my head to clear these ridiculous thoughts, hoping no one asked what I'd been thinking about.

When her eyes were able to focus once more, Ranger handed us each a folder and began walking us through the activity in Miami. Maggie Lopez was the owner and instructor of the dance studio that had been used as a recruiting ground in Miami for her brother's drug activity. Praying on young couples with clean records in need of some fast income, they would offer them the chance to make deliveries to various businesses in town and would pay them in cash as long as they made the drop successfully without opening the container or disclosing to anyone what they were doing. Each drop was worth a thousand bucks and one couple reported making at least four drops a week over the course of a month. That had the potential to represent enough money to make a lot of a people turn a blind eye to what might be in the boxes.

It was not known who the end users of the drugs were, other than the girls RangeMan had in the victim photos. Half of the girls had been involved in the drug deliveries and had made a drop with an open container. The other half reported being drugged at a bar and the assailant used it like a date rape drug where the victim couldn't escape, so there was the excitement of a fight without her having the ability to really get away. Hearing these stories made my blood boil.

I came from a big New York Italian family. My dad worked on the docks and was as rough as they came but when ever he was around my mom he acted differently. He told my brother and me it was because she was a lady and above all else the measure of a man was in how he treated his lady. Any jackass could act the same way all the time and be crude and vulgar at home, but a real man knew when that would work and when he needed to soften it. When a woman was around you needed to be able to control yourself enough to show her the respect she was due. Everything inside of me wanted to strike out at the bastards that hurt these girls.

I glanced at Stephanie and thought she looked a little pale. Maybe it was still early for her, or maybe the idea of just how much danger she could be in was finally hitting her.

Ranger pressed on, running through the evidence that the Miami office had gathered and the fact that they couldn't pin it on Maggie's brother. They needed to be able to do that in order to stop this drug's flow. Arresting Maggie as the pipeline lead would slow it down, but only temporarily. Only a dumb as rocks fed would think that was the right move now.

Hmm, I never noticed now many expressions had the word rock in them. Strange you would compare intellect to something that wasn't even living. I mean, why not use something that was alive but unable to think for itself, like a jelly fish? They don't have brains and function almost entirely off of evolved instincts instead of premeditated thought. Of course, dumb as jelly fish just doesn't have the same ring to it.

"You still with us?" Ranger asked, looking at me. Apparently my internal side conversation was more engrossing than I thought.

"Yes sir," I replied, hoping to get the focus off me before I did something stupid.

According to the summary page at the back of the folder it was our job to pose as a couple and take dance lessons under the pretense of needing to be able to dance at a cousin's wedding in a few months. We were to try and establish a friendship with Maggie and see if our cover story would get her to recruit us to be distributors for the drug. Then we would track the shipment given to us in order to see where it goes after delivery and see if by showing some aptitude for this type of work she might allow us to work directly with her brother Ramón, thereby getting the evidence the feds would need to shut the operation down.

Then he handed us another folder each, which contained all the documentation for our cover. We were playing ourselves which was helpful. I didn't know how much experience Steph had in maintaining a cover long term, but since I knew she sucked at lying this would make it much easier. The only changes were the establishment of a separate bank account in the name of RangeMan where our earnings in excess of a certain level would be deposited. This way, our personal checking and savings accounts would only show minimal balances to further support our claim that we needed additional income.

Then Ranger pulled out the big guns. "We need to set this relationship up with an element of believability and immediate recognition, both in the Burg and in the community."

"How are we supposed to do that?" I wondered aloud. I mean, I could follow orders but it sounded like he needed some creative public display and I had no idea how to pull that off.

Steph was biting on the end of her thumb and you could almost see the wheels turning in her head. Finally she said, "I need to blow up a car."

"Babe," Ranger said in a tone of voice that was almost indulgent.

"You come up with a better idea, and I'll gladly go along with it." She countered.

"Tell me how this will achieve the objective of setting you two up as a couple?" Ranger pressed, willing to hear her out before shutting down the idea entirely.

"First of all, every time I blow up a car it does two things. It triggers the Burg grapevine and it makes the newspaper. Joe will show up if my car is in flames so we just need to be sure that Vince is there too and asserts himself as the person who will be taking care of me from now on when one of my public embarrassments happens. This will piss off Joe, which might cause a bit of a scuffle, but it will get the news around town that I have a new boyfriend quicker than anything. Plus if Vince is actually comforting me, then I'll bet anything the newspaper photographers will get a snapshot of that for the front page."

I had to admit, she had come up with a damn good plan.

"Plus, if my car blows up we can make the case even stronger for needing some extra cash to either buy me a new one, or pay for the hike in my insurance premiums." She pressed on, in essence shining up her perfect idea even more.

Ranger nodded when she finished and then asked, "And how do you propose blowing up a car on demand?" I could have sworn he was smiling, but that couldn't be right.

She rolled her eyes as though Ranger had just asked her how she proposed to make the rest of the doughnuts disappear. "Leave that to me. If you need a public spectacle, then I'm your girl."

"Will you at least tell me when you plan on blowing it up so we can be sure you are safe?" He pushed, making a valid point. We needed Stephanie to be in good shape for this mission to work.

"I'll let Vince know, but I won't tell anybody else because it will need to be believable as one of my usual accidents. Plus, I need to be sure Vince makes it to the scene about the same time as Joe in order to capitalize on the Burg grapevine getting the most mileage out of it," she explained.

At least I would know what was going on so I could advise against it if she was taking too great a risk.

Ranger nodded, allowing her explanation before moving on. "The last thing will be public perception. If your relationship starts with a bang, so to speak, then you will need to start spending time together right away. Only the core team will know this is an act, so you have to stay in character all the time. You can't slip up with your family, on the phone, or even at lunch with your friends. For this to work you have to give the appearance of being committed to each other all the time. When the job is done, we'll work out how to set the record straight, but until then you need to give the appearance of that new relationship honeymoon."

Stephanie shivered at the word honeymoon. She'd been married once before so I wondered what kind of shitty connotations she had with that word.

"Today I want you two to take a long lunch in a public place. You need to be seen together before the explosion when you are officially going public with your relationship. And you both need to get to know each other really well. You need to learn what ever is necessary to give the appearance of people who are intimately involved." When he gave the last instruction, he broke his pencil in half. Thank God he'd asked me to do this himself. If I hadn't already received his assurance he wanted me to do this then I'd be worried about my health right now.

Neither of us had any questions so he dismissed us with an additional folder full of research for us to review and learn in order to be fully prepped for the people we might encounter while gathering information at the dance studio.

I glanced at my watch and saw the full briefing had taken three hours. As we walked out I held the door for her to pass through and then asked, "Do you want to go to Pino's for lunch?" I knew she liked it so I guessed that was as good a place as any.

She turned her head to the side like a puppy does when it's confused before saying, "I don't think we should try Pino's yet. It could cause a run in that we haven't staged enough to control. How about Shorty's instead? Some of the guys might see us, which could lead a little more credibility to our sudden relationship in front of them."

I agreed and we decided to meet there at noon. As she walked away I shook my head, surprised at how good she was at this whole cover story shit. I think I might have underestimated my partner in this mission. She'd already taught me a thing or two.

An hour later I was waiting in my truck in the Shorty's parking lot when she pulled up in her latest piece of shit. It was a 2000 Honda CRV with enough rust on the side that it looked like it had a brown stripe detail. She'd had it for almost three months, which in her life was a long time.

She smiled at me and I walked ahead to catch the door for her as we walked in. We settled in a table at the side which gave us a little more privacy for the conversation we needed to have. Part of the purpose of this lunch was to be seen in public which this would allow for, but the bigger part was to begin to get to know each other.

I was struck by the fact that this was the first time I'd ever gone anywhere with just Stephanie before. I'd worked distractions to support her with a group of other guys. And the last time her car blew up I had arrived with Bobby on the scene to check her out. But I'd never had her attention all on me before. Suddenly, I felt those prepubescent clammy hands once more and I silently cursed feeling this way. I was an Army Ranger, prepared for anything. I'd faced death and looked him the eye, living to tell about it. I could handle lunch at a damn pizza dive.

The waitress appeared almost as soon as we sat down and we ordered our drinks and a large supreme pizza to split. I had been around her enough to know her tastes in pizza were close enough to my own to feel comfortable throwing that order out for us both.

Once the server disappeared Steph looked at me and said, "I really appreciate you agreeing to do this job with me. When Ranger gave me the story of those girls getting hurt I wanted to do whatever was necessary to try and stop it before things went that far in Trenton."

"Can you tell me why you pegged me for this role?" I responded. Realizing that sounded a little rude I tried to soften it by saying, "I mean, I would have figured you would have asked Lester to do this."

She laughed and said, "Actually he was the first person I asked about but Ranger had a list of people and none of the core team were on it. He told me to pick somebody from the list and of the guys on it; I felt like we shared enough things that we could pull off pretending to be a couple."

"What things do we share?" I asked, curious how much she knew about me.

Her face instantly colored telling me she had been given some kind of details about my life. "Ranger gave me a brief file on the guys he thought could do the job and I saw you were from a family sort of like mine with a single sibling who was successful and two parents who were still together, still living in the same house you were raised in. Plus, I kind of guessed you were Italian based on your last name."

"Sì, grazie a Dio sono italiano," I replied to a very confused looking Stephanie.

"I'm sorry, my dad spoke a little and his parents were constantly talking in Italian, but I've forgotten a lot of it." She confessed sheepishly. The way she put her head down as though she were slightly embarrased was kind of sexy.

I smiled at her and translated, "I said, 'yes, thank God I'm Italian'."

"Do you speak Italian a lot?" She asked, looking a little concerned I would say yes.

"Nah, when my dad got mad he would go into Italian. So anytime I'm at home, the conversation will often go between the two languages. But it isn't something I use much around the office," I confided realizing I missed it a little. Italian was such a sensual language. The words poured from your lips in a way where even vulgarities sounded pleasing.

"I'm sure I would pick it up again but I don't know if I can handle trying to get a language in my head on top of everything else right now," She admitted.

"No worries," I tried to reassure her. Then I decided to change the subject. "So it seems like you have a bit of an advantage on me of having already gotten my background. Any chance I can get the same thing?"

She thought about it for a minute and then shook her head. "My life isn't as interesting. You'd fall asleep trying to read it. How about I give you the Reader's Digest version instead?"

So, while we ate pizza she shared the highlights of her life to date with me. I was already aware of most of it. The business degree was a shock, as was the scoop on her first failed marriage. I'd never heard of a case where someone's name matched their behavior as perfectly as his did. I knew he'd cheated on her, but the way he tried to turn her family against her for divorcing him made me want to find him and make sure he understood what I thought about him trying to hurt her like that. And as bad as everything she shared with me was, I still had a gut feeling she was holding back something.

The thing that caught me most off guard was her description of her relationship with Joseph Morelli. I had worked with him a few times and kind of liked him. He played it close to the law, but he understood that sometimes overlooking a slight bending of a rule by someone else was more important than losing the criminal scum he was after. I only knew about their back and forth relationship of late. I had no idea they had a history together that went back to elementary school.

The fact that she blew off being molested by the boy next door when she was so young was even more alarming. I don't care how he tried to excuse away his behavior with a childish name for it, he should have somebody permanently take his "choo choo" out of commission. When she got to him writing the poem on the bathroom wall and then leaving her to face the shame alone, I was ready to find the cop and teach him a lesson greater than the one I thought Dickie had coming to him. But when she explained about introducing him to the front grill of her father's Buick, I nearly choked on my water.

"You broke his leg?" I asked to be sure I heard her right. The smile on her face was all the confirmation I needed.

I was torn between loving how she took care of the creep and a little healthy fear that I needed to watch my back during this assignment to be sure I didn't do anything stupid enough to warrent her seeking revenge against me.

When she was finished I only had a few more details than what most of RangeMan knew but hearing her tell the same stories gave them more light. I mean we all knew her mother seemed to think of Valerie as the better daughter, but hearing Steph refer to her as Saint Valerie and give a few examples let me know, much like my own brother Marco, she had always played second fiddle and never quite measured up in her mother's eyes. Maybe she was right. We might share just enough to pull this whole cover off easier than I thought.

Stephanie was easy on the eyes so spending time with her was no hardship. The conversation was comfortable once I got over my nerves about being alone with her and she tried to answer everything I asked which told me I wouldn't have to work at getting information out of her everytime we checked in on the case. My biggest fear was that the guys would see through us.

"What do you think will be the hardest part of the cover?" I asked her.

She thought for a second before saying, "Grandma Mazur." I grimaced at the mention of her name, which only made Stephanie laugh before explaining. "She knows me pretty well and can usually pick up on something when it's off. Plus she has this horrible habit of just blurting out whatever she's thinking so if she doubts we're real then she'll say it to anybody that will listen." Then she paused before turning the question back on me.

"Convincing the guys," I told her honestly. "Most of the guys in that building would love to have a chance to ask you out but most of us were too scared to act on it becasue of the thing between you and the boss. So, I have a feeling I'm going to get hit up every morning in the gym about how I managed to get you to go out with me and live to tell about it with Ranger around. I'm guessing they will be suspicious for a while and some of them might even try to make a move of their own in order to see if you might ditch me for them. Once you're considered fair game then I think you might be surprised at how some of them act."

She grinned and said, "If they start hitting on me, you have to promise to let me handle it."

"What do you mean?" I asked, wondering if she was thinking about dusting off the Buick once more.

"I mean, you can't just go around the office threatening the guys like Ranger used to. You have to let me fight these kinds of battles on my own. You have to act like you trust me to take care of myself even if you don't," she explained.

"I trust you," I blurted out quickly. "I know how capable you are." She looked slightly doubtful but let it go. I decided to ask her a different question in order to change the subject. "So are you going to tell me how you're going to send your next car to the afterlife?"

She shook her head no about the details but she did say, "I think I have it all set up for this afternoon at Mooner's house. Any chance you can be in the neighborhood about 4:00?"

"Sure, do you want me at his house then?" I asked wanting to play whatever role she had in mind well.

"No, I need to call you and if it's possible you need to arrive about thirty seconds after the first officers on the scene," she directed as though she had a perfect movie set in her mind.

"I'll do my best," I replied hoping I didn't screw this up. "What exactly do you want me to do when I get there?"

"I want you to ask if I'm alright and then follow my lead. Don't kiss my lips because that will be too much too soon, but let me hang on to you without it looking like you're surprised. And if Joe begins to look like he's about to blow a gasket then do whatever macho thing feels right, short of hitting him. I can't have my new boyfriend spending the night in jail for assaulting an officer, but it needs to be obvious that you know he and I are over and you need to assert a claim. Sometime during the scene the guys from RangeMan will arrive so you can play that however you want to." I couldn't believe how well planned out she had this.

She looked at me strangely and asked what I was thinking. "I have to be honest. Most of us think you kind of operate by the seat of your pants, sort of winging it when we would stop and plan out a strategy. But you clearly _are_ planning things out, it's just that your mind works faster than ours do." I hoped my explanation wasn't insulting.

She gave me a soft smile I didn't recognize and she said, "I think that was the nicest thing someone has said to me in a while."

When it was time to leave she started to pull her wallet from her purse but I reached across the table to stop her by putting my hand on top of hers. "What?" She asked innocently.

"My girlfriend will never pay for a thing when we're out together." I told her, remembering my dad saying the same thing to my mom even when she just wanted a pack of gum at the gas station.

"But this is just a business lunch to get our story straight," she tried to disagree with me quietly.

I let her hands go but refused to give up the point. "Maybe, but this job will succeed or fail based on our ability to convince the public that we are really a couple. The guys know that I'd never let my girlfriend pay for her own lunch so I need you to let me get this and any other tab in the future."

Her eyes narrowed and I wondered if I was about to get a dose of her firey temper that I was more than familiar with publicly. "You can't pay for all my food. I eat a lot, and this assignment could take a long time."

I matched her expression with one of my own and said, "Not only _can_ I do it, but I _will_ do it. You picked me because of my heritage, which means you should be more than familiar with stubborn Italian males. I'm buying everything you need when we're together. If it rubs you the wrong way we can discuss some sort of offline reimbursement later when we're away from the public eye, but when we're around other people every bill comes out of my wallet."

She sat back hard against her chair and threw up one of her hands in the air mumbling something about stupid stubborn men, but she did allow me to take the check and throw down enough cash to cover it.

As we stepped out I barely had time to open the door for her before she stormed through it. Obviously no one had ever treated her like a lady before and I wasn't going to let her use that as an excuse to keep me from taking care of her. My dad taught me better than that and she was my partner. Where I come from, we watch over our partners and Stephanie was going to benefit from my training, even if she wanted to try and refuse to accept it.

I was only six hours into this relationship and she was already driving me nuts. Maybe we could pull this off after all. In my experience all the guys I grew up with that were in relationships seemed to walk the line between being totally in love and completely furious at their spouses. I could see the extremes both ways with Miss Plum and wondered how this was going to play out.

I walked her over to her car and held the door open after she unlocked it and climbed in. "1600 hours?" I asked.

She looked at me like I had just spoken Latin to her and then smirked as understanding came. "Yea, four o'clock."

"You'e not going to give me any other details about what to expect when I get there?" I asked, wanting to leave with things a little more settled between us. I didn't like the idea of her being angry with me right before blowing up her car and then me having to try and comfort her. It was going to be strange enough as it was, but I didn't want to have to fight her temper too to make it believable.

She thought about it for a minute and I thought I could see her thawing a little. "You can expect lots of flames, people passing money around, laughing at my expense, and one really pissed off Italian cop."

I thought about the scenes I had been on when her cars had gone up in smoke and realized she was right. I usually focused on the possible crime scene, trying to gather information about what had happened and not looking at how it must seem to her. I needed a way to get on her good side and help her to see me as someone she could trust, not just another guy prone to fits of temper. I had two hours to come up with the right response.

It's a shame this relationship had to be real to everybody, even our families. For the first time in a long time I had the urge to call my mom for advice.


	3. BOOM!

_Usual disclaimer…JE…credit, etc._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234), your support as the beta on this story goes so far beyond just proofreading. Thanks for the encouragement and willingness to tackle my run on sentences._

**Chapter 3 – BOOM!**

_Stephanie's POV_

Just because my cars seem to self destruct several times a year doesn't mean I don't know anything about them. But as I lay on the rough pavement of the street in front of Mooner's house looking at all the cables and wires I began to wonder if my brilliant plan wasn't as smart as I once thought. I needed to find the gas line and struggled to remember the lessons in the garage with my dad when I was a little girl.

The last time he had me out there with him we were having a wonderful time laughing and talking and then my mother came around the corner shrieking like a banshee that I was filthy dirty. She pulled me out from under the car, scratching my back in the process, and began to yell that I had grease under my nails. My dad told my mother to leave me alone but she never did. If anything, that confrontation spelled the beginning of the end of time spent alone with my dad and a period where my mother poured all her energy into trying to make me into the ideal Burg daughter.

I realized the underside of my Honda looked nothing like the 1972 Buick my dad and I had worked on together. Still, this needed to be done and since I couldn't decide between the two equally possible tubes, I decided to slice them both just to be sure. The first produced some sort of black glop. I had no idea what that was but I was pretty sure gas shouldn't turn into sludge, so I grabbed the other one and found it much harder to cut. After sawing for several minutes a little amber liquid began to drip out. I decided to leave it as a drip instead of a downpour because my arm was tired of being raised up and the muscle was getting sore. At some point I needed to learn to work out.

Satisfied with my part of the plan I walked into Mooner's house, hoping my little stoner wouldn't let me down. "Dudette!" He called out to me as he opened the door. "Did I miss a court date?" He asked totally confused about why I was there. "I don't even remember getting arrested."

I couldn't help but smile at that. "You're not in trouble Mooner," I assured him. "My car was running a little funny so I thought I'd stop here and let it rest for a while." I felt slightly guilty lying to him but he figured he'd never know the difference, nor would he care if he did.

Then he pulled the door open the rest of the way and I saw a lit cigarette in his left hand. I was telling myself it was a cigarette despite its small obviously hand rolled appearance. That was exactly what I needed to make my little plan work. I checked my watch and saw it was three minutes before four so I said, "Do you mind throwing that into the street? I've been sick lately and I need to avoid second hand smoke." Boy, for a girl who doesn't lie well I was having no trouble spitting them out today. And Mooner was buying everything I said because he immediately took a final long draw and then walked to the edge of his sidewalk and flicked it just behind my CRV.

"Anything for you Dudette," he said in his typical carefree and friendly way. "Hey, I Dream of Jeannie is about to come on," he announced. "Want to watch?"

"Sure," I replied hoping to get him in the house before the trail of gas leaking from my car hit the lit cigarette in the street. Just as I stepped across the threshold I heard the sound of the trail of gas catch fire. When I turned back the flames followed the little path up the hill to stop just under the gas tank and swell in height.

"Whoa, that doesn't look good," Mooner announced when the flames began to curve around the side of my Honda.

"No, I think we might need to step inside a little further," I warned him just as the loud crack announced the explosion that was a second from occurring.

I'd seen too many cars go up in flames to count, but the whole explosion part never ceased to amaze me. The car was thrown up in the air and the noise that came made my ears ring. Little pieces of debris rained down on the porch rooftop and I felt myself smile as I thought that for the first time in history, my car had exploded and it was completely my fault. Something about knowing I planned and executed the perfect explosion was a heady exhilarating feeling.

"Dudette, I think we need to call somebody," Mooner announced sitting on the floor just inside his front door.

I think between the noise and the flames this was the most alert I'd ever seen him. Could an explosion take away a buzz that quickly? "Can you call 911 for the fire department and be sure to tell them Stephanie Plum's car just exploded?" I asked, wondering if he could handle that task.

But as soon as the instruction was given he jumped up for the phone and placed a perfectly calm and informative call into emergency services. At the same time, I picked up my phone and dialed Vince's cell phone.

"Yo," he answered in RangeMan style.

"We're going to have to work on how you answer the phone when it's me," I began, wondering where the bossy assertive tone came from. I was bordering on rude so I softened my voice a little to talk over his chuckle. "I have succeeded in making my car go boom," I confessed.

"You sound pretty happy about it too," he replied with that chuckle still evident in his voice.

"I am happy about it. It always pisses me off when my cars explode and it wasn't my fault, but this time I meant to do it so I got to watch the whole thing and it was kind of cool to know I caused such a ruckus." I don't know why I confessed that to him but the buzz of my success had apparently loosened my tongue. That, or the fumes from Mooner's house were getting to me a little. I was feeling slightly light headed.

"Should I head over now?" Vince asked.

"Wait until we hear sirens so you aren't the first one on the scene and there are people here to witness your arrival. Remember, you need to be beside yourself to see that I'm alright and concerned about what happened and why," I reminded him.

"I think I can handle that," he replied with a serious edge to his voice. Then he asked, "Are you?"

"Am I what?" I asked, unsure what he was talking about.

"Are you alright?" He clarified and my chest tightened a little. He was genuinely concerned.

I think it was the concern with no yelling about putting myself in such dangerous situations that made me answer him honestly. "I'm fine, but the boom it made was louder than I remembered so my ears are still ringing slightly and it's giving me a headache."

The sirens began to cut through louder and I saw exactly what I wanted to see. At the front was a patrol car with Eddie and Big Dog in it. Behind that was a fire truck, which was a good thing as the fire didn't seem to be lessening any despite the CRV being on its side and the main explosion being moments behind us. At the rear of the little emergency response team was a brown Ford that contained one pissed off looking Joseph Morelli.

"I think you need to head over now. Joe just got here and he looks pissed," I said hoping Vince would hurry. I didn't fear Joe but I also didn't want him to get too angry over this either.

"Don't let him get you alone and I'll be there in three minutes," he answered before hanging up. That was something else we were going to have to work on for this to have a chance of being believable. If I couldn't pay for anything when we went out together then he was going to have to stop hanging up on me.

Before I could think about anything else to add to the list I realized the street was getting crowded. The police scanners must be going nuts with this because there were already news crews, another fire truck, and three other patrol cars. But the mass frenzy of curious onlookers was easy to ignore with the face of Joe stalking straight toward me.

"Cupcake, what in the hell happened here?" He screamed, still ten feet away and closing in fast.

I glanced behind him at the flames still pouring out of my car and answered sarcastically, "I think it's pretty obvious what happened." With that reply I sat down on the steps of Mooner's porch.

Joe stood right in front of me, blocking the view of the activity and began his usual rant. "Do you have any idea how close you came to dying today? Do you even care? You have totally lost your mind. You need to stop this stupidity and just come back with me. Obviously you aren't safe since another fruitcake has blown up your car, so I'll try to keep you locked up while we figure out who you've pissed off this time. You know most of the people that do your job manage it without blowing up their cars. Why are you being such a stubborn girl about this? Just accept that you have given this your best shot and quit while you're still alive to have a family."

His yelling was quickly cutting through the fog that had been in my brain. Either that or the fresh air from outside was diluting the pot smoke mini-buzz I had in the house. "Joe," I tried to interrupt, but he continued to yell with both arms motioning to give evidence of how pissed off he really was.

I saw Eddie come over and try to pull him away but Joe shook off his grip and said, "No, Eddie, I'm not leaving her alone until she admits she's in over her head and agrees to stop this foolishness. This is no way for a girl from the Burg to act. She's embarrassing her family and her friends."

I remembered then as his words cut into me why I had broken things off with Joe in the first place. He could be a great guy, but when he was scared he got angry and when Joe was mad he didn't think before he spoke; he just bullied and argued and yelled. I didn't need any more evidence about why the two of us didn't belong together but the hurt his words were causing was proof of it just the same.

I had been sucked into his rant and had forgotten to look for Vince until I heard him arguing with the police detail trying to secure the scene and keep all the curious onlookers back. His voice cut through Joe's. "I'm getting through this line, now let me pass so I can check on Stephanie." They tried to argue that the EMT's would check on me but he continued to push through the three officers who were attempting to restrain him.

As soon as he busted through their grasp and started to jog toward me I acted on instinct. Something about seeing him fight to get to get through stirred something in me that I couldn't pinpoint. He seemed royally pissed off too, but it wasn't directed at me. I jumped up from the step where I had been seated and took off running straight to Vince.

He opened his arms and I ran into them hitting his chest hard. But Vince's arms came around me immediately and kept me from bouncing back or falling. I could feel the anger rolling off of him over my head but his hands were perfectly gentle and soothing as they rubbed up and down my back, keeping me cradled against him. "Are you okay?" He asked quietly.

I nodded my head, remembering I'd already answered that question on the phone. As if he knew what I was thinking he said, "Not from the explosion, from Morelli. I could hear him yelling a block away and the closer I got, the faster I ran. He's losing control and I was afraid he was going to go from cruel words to violence."

I shook my head no and tried to assure him. "Joe is pissed, and he can be mean when he's mad, but he's never violent with me. He would never hurt me."

Vince kept his arms around me but pulled back to look in my eyes. "That's where you're wrong. He might never hit you, but I could tell from the look on your face that his words were hurting you."

I wanted to disagree with him, but I was distracted by the golden flecks in his brown eyes. So I stayed silent instead. It had been a long time since I'd had someone act concerned about me and not try to either yell at me about it or put emotional distance between us because of it.

Before I could reflect on it any longer I heard Joe quickly approaching, and I knew it was show time.

"Cupcake, you need to come with me," Joe spit out obviously not happy with the picture in front of him.

Vince answered before I could. "She's not going any where with you." After a second's pause he added, "Ever again."

I turned slightly so that I could see Joe but Vince kept his arms around me. It wasn't smothering in anyway which was surprising. I actually liked the feel of his muscular arms protecting and shielding me.

Joe pointed a finger right into Vince's chest. "You need to keep out of this. It's bad enough I have to put up with Manoso sticking his nose into my business, but I'll be damned if I'll put up with his goons doing it too."

And just like that I saw red. Vince's arms tightened down on me as soon as I lunged forward, determined to knock that all knowing controlled expression off of Joe's face. "Don't you ever call Vince a goon!" I screamed. "You have no right to dictate what I do or who I do it with. We broke up, we're finished. We will never get back together," I ranted.

Then I put a hand on Vince's chest and loudly announced, "I've moved on, and you need to too."

Joe was breathing fast and deep through his nose, sucking in the air in an attempt to get a handle on his anger. He was obviously surprised at the idea that I had moved on and apparently the thought of it being with Vince, instead of Ranger like he had always suspected, had rendered him silent.

"Him?" Joe finally asked. "You're with _him_?"

I nodded, not wanting to lie to somebody who knew me so well. Getting Mooner to buy it was one thing, getting a friend practically since birth who was a cop trained in seeing deception was a whole different ball of wax. Hmm, there was another interesting expression. Why should we refer to balls of wax? As far as I knew balls had never been made out of wax; leather, rubber, and even wood all worked. But what sport would use wax? It would melt for one, and for another it was pliable so it would crush if it were hit too hard. I could now understand why English was such a difficult language to learn. Few of our expressions actually made sense.

It was the movement of Vince that snapped me out of my strange thoughts and back to reality. Vince's voice was quieter but the firmness of it wasn't lost on me. "She's with me, and I'll do whatever it takes to protect her from any threat." The fact that he saw Joe as a threat was pretty obvious.

Joe's jaw clenched at the accusation that he would ever hurt me and then he spit out, "Well good luck with that, since the biggest threat is her own stubborn pride." With that, he turned around and stomped off through the crowd making his way to his Ford to leave.

Watching Joe walk away, knowing that the idea that I had moved on while he was holding out the hope that we would get back together as we had so many times before, was hard. Vince pulled me back around so that my face was against his chest. One arm held me against him while the other rubbed up and down my arm like he was checking me for injuries. We stayed that way for a while until Eddie approached tentatively and asked, "Steph, can I get a statement from you about what happened?"

I turned around, disappointed when Vince let his arms fall away. I had to remind myself that the public display was for Joe's benefit and that of the Burg. This was now official police business so our show wasn't relevant. This was just an acting gig and I needed to keep that fact firmly in the front of my head. As nice as his warm arms were, he was just acting and I had to remember that. There was no place for confusion in this assignment.

I gave Eddie a description of everything except my cutting of the gas line. I repeated my lines to Mooner and how he'd thrown out a cigarette into the road just before the explosion. Eddie wrote it all down and then asked about enemies or any ideas about who would have cut my gas line.

"You think somebody cut my gas line?" I asked, surprised at the horror in my voice.

Vince's arms reappeared, as though he somehow understood I was anxious about the question. He was silent behind me just holding my back to his chest and keeping his arms around me.

Eddie smiled slightly at the contact between us before answering. "Yea, it's the only explanation that makes sense for how the fire traveled and then instantly exploded the car. And unless you've been seeing a tank of gas only lasting you hours instead of days, then it must have happened today." Sometimes I forget behind Eddie's easy going nature is a good cop that was a good friend to me in high school.

"I haven't brought in any difficult skips. Actually, since it's been so hot lately, I haven't brought in any skips at all." I told him.

Eddie shut his book and said, "We'll let the fire chief look over the wreckage. But as charred as it is, there's nothing he will be able to get off of it. I'll get you a copy of the report for your insurance carrier but I doubt we'll be able to do much beyond that."

He smiled at me and asked, "Are you sure you're alright?"

Vince's arms tightened slightly and I leaned into him more. "Yea, I'm fine."

Eddie took a few steps away and then turned back, "I'm happy for you Steph."

"Thanks Eddie," I replied with a smile. When you were down it was always nice to see who your real friends were. Eddie was quickly working his way to the top of that list for me.

The fire seemed to be dying down a little but I was surprised that there were still flames dancing around. "You don't do anything half way do you?" Vince asked from behind me.

I shook my head and felt a smile come back to my lips. "Anything worth doing is worth doing right," I quoted my dad. That earned me a kiss on the top of my head.

I looked up in response. I had told him not to kiss me on my lips, and a lot of the guys kissed my hair, but it seemed different when he did it. Before I could think about it too much I heard some other familiar voices.

Bobby was quickly approaching with Lester to one side and Cal and Junior to the other. "You okay?" Bobby asked with his medic bag in hand.

I smiled, "I'm fine, and I'm tired of answering that question."

Bobby's eyes ignored my response and began to work from the top of my head to my feet before he opened his bag and pulled out his pen light and began to try to blind me by flashing it closely to my pupils. "I'm fine," I reiterated once more.

"Do you still have a headache?" Vince asked, causing the ringing in my ears to intensify with my anger.

Bobby's expression changed completely with that little detail and he began to run his fingers through my hair, pulling some of it out of the bun I had wrestled it into this morning. I knew he wouldn't relax until his exam was finished so I just talked around him and said to Vince, "You know you didn't need to do that. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

"I know you are," he quickly defended. "But I'm not as good at the idea of you having to always do it, so I need you to cut me a little slack."

"You're going to have to learn to trust me to ask for help when I need it," I said trying to hang on to the anger that was quickly disappearing in light of such a tender response from the man still keeping me in his grasp.

"If you'd ask for help, just once, then it would be easier to believe you'd do it when you needed it," he countered with no hint of temper in his voice.

I knew he was right, but letting someone take care of me was hard. My mom always wanted to care for me, but that was just a veiled attempt to make me into who she wanted. My dad cared for me, but when my mom stood up to him he backed down and let her have her way, abandoning me to a woman who just wanted another clone of her perfect daughter. Dickie said he would care for me, but his definition of that included not telling me about the number of women he was sleeping with. Joe promised he'd always care for me, but his version of that was dangerously close to my mother's.

And Ranger, well, he had cared for me. I couldn't deny that. When I asked for his help it was freely given in such excess it nearly took my breath away. But even that came with a cost, despite his 'no price' slogan. The price it exacted was the effect it had on my heart. Each time he was kind or gentle with me I let him in a little more and now he was firmly there but I always wondered if it's where he wanted to be. When he told me a few months ago that he would never have a real relationship with a woman it hurt and it took a while before the constant pain of that revelation began to subside.

"Sorry," I whispered, unsure why I felt the need to talk so quietly all of a sudden. "My track record is pretty shitty when it comes to trusting people."

Vince knocked Bobby's hands away where he was pressing on my head, still searching for any small bump or cut. He spun me around so quickly I got slightly dizzy. This would have been the perfect moment for a kiss, but I had been really clear that I didn't want a smack on the lips today. I wondered briefly if he'd overlook that instruction and push his luck.

Instead, he surprised me by bending slightly to even the height difference between us and he hugged me to him firmly. He spoke in a low voice, not exactly whispering, but I figured the rumble of his voice would make it hard for the guys around us to understand what was being said. "If this is going to work, you are going to have to trust me. I'm your partner in this and I'll have your back. I'm not going to hurt you, I'm not going to leave you and I'm not going to force you to do things that aren't who you are."

Damn, with that one sentence he summed up every reason I had to keep the distance between us. I nodded, not willing to speak. Before the silence began to grow I heard Cal behind us say, "How did we miss this?"

I had no idea what he was talking about so I turned my head and saw he was pointing to Vince and me still clinging to each other. From the outside we must have looked very much like a couple in love; reassuring each other with our touches alone that all was well.

"What?" I asked, figuring we may as well get the office gossip mill running too. Whoever thought guys were tightlipped and uninterested in water cooler speculation had never worked at Haywood.

"When did…" Cal started and then stopped himself.

Junior picked up with the real question, "Are you two together?"

I could feel Vince's chest shaking with laughter that he was struggling to hold in. I looked up and saw pure amusement on his face so I kept quiet to let him answer to his friends.

"You could say that," he cleverly evaded a direct answer. I needed to take notes on how to not answer a question without lying, yet giving the impression you had answered the question. As confusing as it sounded, that could be a very handy skill.

"But are _you_ saying it?" Cal pushed. Hmm, apparently all the guys had the same question evading training.

Vince answered, "This is still really new," before looking down at me and asking, "Are we saying that we're together?"

I wanted to try my hand and answering without actually saying anything so I tried, "They've seen us now so it's going to be a little hard to deny."

Vince's smile grew at my response and his eyes sparkled with mischief. Something told me he was capable of causing his mother every bit as much grief as I did my own.

Junior ran his hand through his blond hair and let out a whistle. "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't believe it."

I decided to toy with him a little and put my hand on my hip and asked, "Why is it so hard to believe that Vince would want to be with me?"

Junior's eyes popped open wide in surprise, clearly not intending to offend me. "It's not surprising that he would want to be with you," he quickly stumbled out. "It's a surprise that you would let him."

"Does the boss know?" Cal asked, holding Vince with a gaze of steel. Apparently Ranger's acceptance or not would be the deciding factor in whether or not Cal would accept it.

Before either of us could answer, Ranger's voice cut through clear as a bell. "I do now." His arms were crossed over his chest making the muscles in his arms seem twice as large and threatening. He had on reflective sunglasses blocking the view of his eyes, but everything else about his face was completely blank.

Cal and Junior made a hasty exit and Bobby announced to no one in particular that I was in good shape and that I could just take some Tylenol for the headache. He and Lester vanished with the other guys, leaving Ranger in front of us with no one else close enough to hear our conversation.

Vince let go of me but I didn't move away. If the guys were still watching from their cars I needed to be sure we didn't lose the impression we had just made in everyone's eyes. Ranger pulled off his glasses and hooked them in the neck of his stretched t-shirt. "Your handy work?" He asked with a tilt of his head to the smoking remains of my car.

I couldn't help it; a smile erupted across my face. "This time I think it is only fair to admit, that it was entirely my fault."

Ranger laughed out loud at my confession. "Proud of you, Babe." I felt my face redden at the words that always made me feel like I'd conquered the world.

He looked around once more, probably very uncomfortable with his back to the scene behind us, but obviously wanting his face to be hidden from the crowd for a reason. "I'm going to be gone for a couple of weeks," he explained. "Tank will be heading up this operation so you will need to check in with him daily, even if it's by phone. If he hasn't heard from you by 1700 hours every day he will assume something has gone wrong and he will extract you immediately, most likely blowing your cover in the process. You've worked too hard to set this up perfectly to forget your check-ins."

I nodded that I understood and felt Vince nod once behind me. "You managed to get your cover established in two hours. That's damn impressive, Babe," Ranger continued. "Once you finish this, you may find yourself in demand for more missions."

I liked the sound of being good enough at something that I was in demand. After being perceived as a failure for so long it was a relief to feel like I'd done a good job.

Ranger then turned to Vince and his whole expression changed from tender and encouraging to harsh and threatening. "Your future depends on your ability to protect her. Any harm at all comes to her and you'll be begging Tank to kill you before I have a chance to get my hands on you. Understood?"

I'd never heard Ranger's voice take on such a vicious sound but Vince didn't seem the least bit surprised by it. They had served together in the Army so I figured he'd probably seen the worst of what Ranger could dish out. "Yes, sir," Vince snapped back in response.

Ranger's face softened and if anything it looked slightly sad when he added, "Take care of her," before slipping his glasses back on and assuming the blank face I so despised.

Before Vince could respond Ranger had spun around and was gliding away. I pushed some hair off of my face that Bobby had pulled loose and then looked at the scene in front of me. The emergency crew was down to just the fire department and a newly arrived tow truck along with two blue and whites. The crowd was gone and I didn't see any black RangeMan vehicles. When I looked behind me, Mooner was sitting on the front porch with a big tub of pop corn in his lap eating and taking in the scene in front of him.

I waved to him and had to smile at his goofy grin when he yelled out, "Later Dudette!"

"Where to now?" Vince asked, sounding a little uncertain about what the next step was. We had carried out the plan for the day and hadn't discussed it any further than this.

"Well, what would you normally do if your girlfriend had just been in great danger? If you'd seen her vehicle in flames and another guy yelling at her?" I hoped he had a suggestion because I had no idea what a normal response was. I usually just got dropped off alone at my apartment after these things.

Vince took my hand in his and said, "We need some dinner, some kind of dessert, and then we're going back to your place for the night."

I don't know if it was the way he was holding my hand, the fact that he took charge without it seeming like he was taking over, or the fact that he promised me dessert, but it sounded like the perfect plan to me.


	4. Working Out

_All the characters are JE's. I deserve no credit for borrowing them._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) thank you once more for your hard work as the beta on this story. Your turn around time and enthusiasm is amazing._

**Chapter 4 – Working Out**

_Vince's POV_

I had to admire Steph's spunk. So far today she'd gotten briefed on a possible new drug ring in Trenton, and been told she was going to have to lie to all her family and friends. She's planned and executed the destruction of her own vehicle, including the public spectacle that always follows her exploits. She pretended to be in a relationship with me, setting up our cover perfectly, and now her biggest concern is whether she should have pizza again or a meatball sub. We were standing at the counter of Pino's looking over a take out menu and I could feel nearly every eye boring into the back of my head. I don't know how she deals with this all the time.

I tried going for playful and bumped her shoulder with my own to get her attention. "We can get both, you know," I prompted. When Tony came over to see if we were ready to place our order she decided on the sub and a big order of tiramisu. I had to laugh at her directing the size of the serving. I told him to double her order to for me and we sat at the end of the counter to wait on our food. I can block out a lot, but the nosey feeling of people waiting to see what was going to happen was beginning to bug me.

"How do you deal with this all the time?" I finally asked her quietly.

"What?" She seemed completely at a loss about what I was talking about.

"You realize nearly every eye in this place is watching us, right?" I clarified.

She smiled. "That's nothing. As long as we keep this distance they will only watch, but if one of us actually touches the other then they will get out their cell phones to try and get a picture to start circulating through the grapevine."

I knew better than to say I didn't believe it, but I had trouble buying it. I mean, I know the Burg and Long Island are two entirely different places, but I couldn't imagine everyone being that interested in a single person that they would have their recording devices at the ready.

"You don't believe me," she said. There was no anger in her voice that I could tell. If anything, her face almost looked like she'd received a dare and was more than willing to rise to the challenge.

We had some time before our dinner would come out so I just raised an eyebrow at her, indicating I wasn't entirely convinced. She leaned closer and whispered, "Turn to the side and open your legs." I couldn't stop the smile that was on my face so I shifted to straddle the stool facing her instead of the counter as I had been.

She turned as well so that her legs were between mine and then she leaned forward and placed both hands on my chest. I didn't even have to listen hard to hear several clicks giving away the fact that people were taking our picture with their cell phones.

"I stand corrected," I admitted with a laugh.

"That's nothing," she said as Tony raised his hand to us indicating our food was ready. "If I'd kissed you, the video would be on-line before we got to my place."

I shook my head. If she ever got tired of being in bond enforcement, this girl could have a public relations career. I'd never seen somebody so in tune with a community before.

We got to her apartment and I found myself acting out of habit. I handed her the bag from Pino's, pulled my berretta out, and searched the apartment for threats. Seeing it was fine, I put the gun away and then took the bag back from her hands to carry it to the kitchen. I looked from her to the front door several times before she got the message and walked over to turn the deadbolt and slide the chain. "Happy?" She asked with sarcasm dripping from her voice.

"Very," I agreed not wanting to make a big deal out of it, but hoping she would take her own safety a little more seriously.

"There's a game on if you want to watch it," she suggested as we pulled the food from the bag.

"Depends on who's playing," I volleyed back. I loved baseball, but I wasn't willing to watch certain teams no matter how bored I was.

"I assumed the Yankee's would be alright," she clarified. "The season is getting good and it was an afternoon game so it's got to be near the end which is the best part."

This assignment was getting easier by the moment. I can't believe I spent most of last night thinking I had lost my mind to agree to this.

When the game was over with the Yankee's easily taking the Marlins she shut off the television and went back to the kitchen, bringing the folders we had received from Ranger this morning in his office. "I guess we need to look over this stuff," she began without much enthusiasm. An hour later we had effectivly read every word but I didn't feel that much better prepared.

"I think tomorrow I'm going to come in the office and run my own check into Maggie and her extended family. I feel like there has to be more here than what we have," Steph announced. I didn't have any other suggestions so I nodded that it was a good idea.

Then Steph grabbed the legal pad on her coffee table and reached for a pen but when she extended her arm she grimaced. "What's wrong?" I asked her.

She blushed, which I though was charming. Of course it also only steeled my resolve to find out what was wrong with her. She must have realized I wasn't going to let this go because she rolled her eyes and blurted out, "It took me a while to find and cut through the gas line on my car and my arm is sore from having it raised over my head for so long."

I could understand that. Plus, I knew I could help with it too. Trying to be practical I asked, "Where's your knife?"

She looked at me as though I had not heard the right words but she got up and began to dig through her purse in the kitchen. Eventually she had to pull stuff out and her counter was littered with her revolver, a pair of cuffs, a stun gun, a can of pepper spray, and at least twenty little pieces of paper that I assumed were receipts from various places. Finally she pulled out a little Swiss army knife and brought it over.

I pulled the blade out and smiled at its small two inch size. That alone would have made it harder to cut through the gas line, but when I ran my thumb over it I smirked. "A dull knife is a dangerous knife," I told her. "It took you so long to cut through because this blade hasn't been sharpened properly. It's really only good for spreading butter."

"The knife was a gift," she told me. "I don't know how to sharpen it. I just assumed it wouldn't be called a knife if it wasn't capable of cutting through stuff so it had to be alright."

"Do you have a file?" I pressed.

She went to the bathroom and then returned with a metal fingernail file. "No, I mean a big metal file for sharpening knives." I tried to correct.

"I'm sure I do. I just picked one up from Macy's the other day, I just can't remember where I put it," she huffed out.

I had to smile at her attempt at a joke but decided to try and make do with what she had. Standing over the trashcan in her kitchen I used the metal file to shave down the edge of her blade and before long I had it much sharper. It wasn't as razor thin as my own knife, but this would do nicely for her.

I closed it before handing it back and then said, "I think I might have ruined your nail file, but your knife is now in good shape."

She took everything back and looked at me strangely before asking, "Why did you do that?"

She was suspicious and I didn't know how to answer the question. "I wanted to help. I can see how this case is asking a lot of you- much more than it is of me. And if there is something I can do to make life easier on you, then I want to do it." I told her before adding, "Besides, I'm a guy. We like to fix stuff."

She seemed to accept the last sentence much easier than the first one, so I let it go. We went back into the den and I pointed to the floor in front of the couch and said, "Sit there and I'll rub your shoulder. If it's beginning to hurt now, it may knot up and spasm, which will leave you in pain for a few days. We can loosen the muscle now and save you all that suffering later."

She eyed me again as though she had no idea what was going on, but she did sit without further comment. I noticed she also grabbed her tablet and pen first and began to write while I was trying to work out the numerous knots in her shoulder. This girl carried tension like I'd never seen before.

"What are you writing?" I asked to keep the focus off of the fact I was touching her.

"A list of things that we need to tackle over the next few days to keep things moving forward," she explained.

"What's on the list right now?" I wondered, genuinely impressed at how seriously she was taking this. I had to admit so far she had absolutely blown away my expectations.

"I need to check with Tank tomorrow to see about registering for the dance class. Should I do it or has it already been taken care of?" She listed as the first priority.

"Then, I want to run a check on Maggie and her family. I feel like a piece of the puzzle is missing, but I can't put my finger on what. Maybe that will help." I had to agree with her approach so far.

"The next one, you may not like. But if we are going to pass as a couple, then you need to come to my parent's house for dinner." I tried to keep the pressure out of my hands when she said that one. I knew she was right. Ranger had said I would be required to eat there at least weekly as a condition of the job. It was the reason he gave for the increase in my salary for the duration of this assignment. But knowing it was going to happen at some point and being told that point was now were two different things. Her grandmother scared me.

"Just let me know when," I managed to reply in a pretty level voice.

"Then we need to figure out how to handle the guys," she finished.

"What do you mean?" I didn't realize the guys needed to be handled.

"I'm guessing tomorrow when you're in the office you are going to get hit up for details about how we got together. When I'm there in the afternoon, it will be the same thing. We need to give them the same story. Plus, when they hear we're taking dance classes, then we are going to need to have a solid explanation for that or they will tear you apart trying to get to the truth." I had to admit she made a good point. None of the guys would willingly take dance classes.

"I have a cousin getting married in a few months. Why can't we say that I needed to learn some of the dances for their fancy party and I needed a partner to take the classes with me so I asked you over lunch and that was the beginning of us going out?" I offered feeling like the story was airtight with no room for questions.

"Why did you pick me instead of the girl you went out with last weekend?" She asked, catching me off guard

"She was just a onetime pick up, and since the lessons will be going on for a few weeks I needed it to be someone who I could spend that kind of time with, but them not get the wrong idea that every lesson was a date," I tried as an answer.

"And yet, we're now dating," she said playing devil's advocate.

I began to work down from her shoulder finding more tender areas in her bicep and upper arm. "Help me out here, I'm obviously no good at coming up with cover stories."

"I guess we need to keep it as close to the truth as possible. We tell them it's still early; we just started really getting to know each other. I like your suggestion of asking me because you thought I would be a safe choice for regular dance classes to prepare for the wedding at the end of the summer. But if you deviate from that any you need to let me know so I don't add to it and screw up the story." She advised.

Then she shocked me by saying, "Then there's the sex thing."

My hands instantly flew off her arm as my face turned red and I felt like a kid getting caught making out by his girlfriend's father. I could have sworn she laughed, but she must have covered it quickly. "It's just that after the display today, you came back here and now it's close to ten o'clock. The guys aren't going to believe we are really committed unless you stay the night. And once you stay the night once they are going to be looking to see if this was a one night stand or a real relationship."

Shit this just got ten times harder than I thought it would so quickly. "So what do we do?" I didn't want to push anything, but it looked like I needed to practically move in with her. I didn't consider it a hardship except that her couch was really short and despite appearances I knew it would begin a period of celibacy that would be a little hard to handle. I wasn't a wild man by any stretch, but if I was going to be so close to a beautiful woman, touching her and holding her in public, then I knew certain needs were going to build and I wasn't going to have a way to release them satisfactorily.

"I don't think you need to stay over every night. But it's Wednesday now, so the weekend is coming and I would think Friday and Saturday nights we need to go out and then you might should stay. The work week we can handle as it comes. If you have early or late shift then there would be no reason to stay, but if you are pulling a regular eight hours in the middle of the day then I would bet they will assume you will be heading over here afterward." She explained making me wonder just how many missions she had been on to have such a grasp of setting up a cover.

"For it to look believable, we need to get a few of your things to leave here because the guys drop over to see me all the time, and they'll check the bathroom and the bedroom to see if you are really sleeping with me," she added.

"I can bring some stuff in a bag Friday," I offered before asking, "Have you done this before? I mean, had to establish a cover like this?"

She laughed hard at my question and got up from the floor to sit beside me on the couch. "No, but I did sneak out of the house a lot as a teenager. I guess my 'lie about where I've been' skills aren't as rusty as I thought."

I'll bet she gave her parents a hell of a time growing up. That was another thing we had in common. Since my brother was perfect in every way I tended to hide the truth about what I was doing. None of my extracurricular activities would have been as interesting as his so it was easier to pretend I was just hanging out with my friends than let them know the truth about it. Maybe I needed to dust off my skills from high school too.

We talked for a little while longer and when she began to yawn I stood up and told her to go to bed. I'd sleep on the couch and in the morning I'd let myself out to make it to the gym in time for my workout before my shift at 0700. She narrowed her eyes briefly and said, "No, you will sleep in the bed. The sheets are clean, and I'll take the couch. You are way too tall to sleep on this comfortably, and I'm used to it."

"I'm not kicking you out of your bed," I said in a stern voice.

"Of course you aren't," she cut back. "I'm voluntarily leaving it and asking you to use it instead."

This was wrong. "Look Steph, I can sleep anywhere, it's part of my training. You are obviously tired; this has been a huge day even by your standards so you need to get a good night of rest in your own bed." I wasn't going to relent on this.

Her eyes narrowed and I could see the fight building up in her. "And you don't need sleep because you're some sort of super hero. Geez, you guys refuse to admit that you might have weaknesses. Just sleep in the bed, I'll be fine on the couch. Sometimes I sleep out here even when there's no one here."

Now here's the thing. I could have just accepted her offer, or I could have proposed some kind of sharing arrangement where I would take the bed tonight, and then Friday when I was back she would use it and we could trade off. But, seeing her standing there with her hands on her hips, building up a head of steam was fascinating to me.

The girls I usually dated weren't the kind to stand up to me. They were interested in sex or possibly money, but it didn't take a second date to know they weren't overly interested in me as a person. I could remember watching my parents argue over things like this and being mesmerized. I never understood why Pop didn't just back down and give Mom what she wanted. Now I could understand it. The fire in Stephanie's eyes when she was angry was pulling me in and I loved watching it.

So instead of giving in I said, "I don't know how to break this to you, but there is no way I'm sleeping in your bed while you are out here on this sofa for the night. You can deal with it however you have to, but you are going to lay down in your own bed tonight."

She didn't have time to think through her answer as it snapped out of her mouth so quickly. "Then you can bloody well be in the bed with me. You aren't sleeping on the couch. We are both adults and it's a queen sized bed. Stay on your side, I'll stay on mine, and then we can be honest if the guys ask and tell them we slept together."

Wow, that was a reasonable solution. I was even slightly disappointed because I was hoping we could go back and forth a little longer. What the hell did that mean?

Things were quiet after her suggestion and we got ready for bed. I checked the locks on the door a final time before stripping down to my boxer briefs and throwing all my clothes on the chair in the corner of her room. She came out of the bathroom in a black t-shirt that hung down lower than some of her distraction dresses. I wasn't sure if there was anything on underneath it, and I was trying to think about anything other than what she might be wearing there. Suddenly my mind was blank. I needed something quick to stop my body from reacting to the possibilities running through my brain.

She climbed in the side away from the door and then said, "Come on, I won't bite, I promise."

I shook my head and tried to run through old baseball stats I could remember from the backs of the trading cards I collected as a kid. She turned off the lamp on her nightstand and then said, "Good night Vince."

It felt like only minutes later when the alarm clock beside me was going off and I was flat on my back, which was odd since I usually could only sleep soundly on my stomach. I shut the noise off and tried to focus on the glowing numbers to see that it was 0445 so I needed to head out to get to the gym. When I tried to move I realized there was a weight on the right side of my body. A quick glance showed me the weight was Stephanie, who had somehow snuggled against me during the night. Well, that explained why I hadn't turned over in my usual manner for sleeping.

I tried to pull my arm out smoothly but the movement woke her slightly. "I have to head out Steph," I whispered, hoping not to wake her fully. "I'll see you later today when you stop by the office."

She said something that was unintelligible. "What?" I asked, wondering if she meant me to hear her.

Apparently she had been talking to me because she still hadn't let go and when I asked her to repeat it I could have sworn she mumbled something about a mark and the guys.

That made no sense so I decided to just humor her and said, "That sounds fine."

I figured she would roll off of me when I agreed with her. I was completely caught off guard when she moved up slightly and attached her mouth to the juncture of my shoulder and neck. What the hell! Her hot little mouth opened and she pulled in skin between her teeth biting down slightly and sucking hard. It hurt a little, but more than that it made the center support of the sheet's tent immediately stand to attention. I needed to get out of here. I had a feeling she was still mostly asleep so I couldn't respond or ask what she was thinking. In order to keep from returning the favor or taking it further than that, I needed to leave.

When her mouth turned loose she sighed out, "Bye," and rolled over. I was partnered with a little hellion. This assignment was quickly becoming more than I bargained for and better than I ever dreamed possible.

I threw my clothes on from yesterday and left her a note on the tablet in front of her coffee pot, asking if she could stop by my cubicle when she arrived at Haywood to keep up appearances. Then I felt like I should warn her about the clearly visible hickie so I added, 'I'm sure the guys are going to have a field day with the mark you put on my neck this morning.'

I stopped by my apartment on four and changed into my workout clothes for the gym. By the time I got there it was nearly 0530 which was a later start than usual for me but I still had time for a decent workout before my shift.

Most of the guys were in the weight room so I intentionally went over to the treadmills and began to run instead. I turned up my i-pod and decided to listen to some classic rock, cranking up Hells Bells from AC/DC. I barely had time to get in a good rhythm before Cal was beside me staring at my neck.

I pulled one ear bud out and asked, "What?"

"You're really with Stephanie?" He said as a question.

"Looks that way doesn't it?" I replied before putting the earphone back in and getting back to my work out, ignoring the Naval officer to my left.

He stomped away and was replaced a few minutes later by Junior who turned my machine off to get my attention. "What?" I demanded, less than pleased at his interference in my workout. Everybody seemed to have a chip on their shoulder today.

I always wondered why we talked about people who were upset about something in terms of chips. I mean, are we talking potato chips or cow chips? I don't see why one would be mad about a snack food on their clothes, but if I had shit on my shirt I'd be pretty pissed about it too.

"How did you do it?" He started his questioning, bringing me back to the current chip being discussed.

"I'm not getting into my personal business with every person in this building," I warned him.

"Screw you man, this isn't about your personal business. This is about Stephanie," Junior pushed.

"I asked, she said yes," I told him, turning the treadmill back on.

"What did you ask for?" He challenged, hitting the power switch once more.

I stared at him for a minute, realizing what a pain in the ass it was to have all the guys feeling like it was their business to get into my dating life. Of course, if I were in their shoes I'd probably want to know what was going on with whoever was dating Steph too. "My cousin is getting married in a couple of months and it's going to be a big fancy circus. I'm trying to get back in the good graces with my family so I was going to take dance lessons in order to impress the old aunts. I asked Steph to go with me since you need a partner for ballroom lessons and I figured she would at least make it fun. Things just rolled along from there." That was the story we'd discussed, so I figured that was okay.

"Dance lessons?" He asked in disbelief.

"I wasn't trying to go after her, but I'm not going to stop what's happening either," I added focusing on the treadmill once more.

Junior stood there silently for a while just watching me run. Finally he said, "You realize every guy here will personally kick your ass if you hurt her, right?"

I turned off the machine this time in order to turn to face him. "I get that, but you should all know me well enough to know I'd never hurt her on purpose. What we've got is new and I don't want you guys poking your nose in where it doesn't belong either."

Junior backed up, apparently getting my tone because he raised his hands in mock surrender and said, "Chill man, we aren't going to cause you trouble. But we will be watching to be sure you're treating her right. She's special, man, and if you're going to date her you need to get used to the idea that we're going to be looking out for her."

I started running once more. "I got it, now leave me alone."

A few minutes later I realized I was standing in a shadow, which could only mean one thing. I stopped the treadmill again, resigning myself to the fact this wasn't going to be one of my better workouts and turned to face Tank who was blocking the light from the window beside me.

Once he had my attention he got very close and spoke quietly. "I'm going to suggest you wear a collared shirt today to cover that up and hope like hell the boss gets out of town before somebody mentions it to him. You were told to pose as her boyfriend, not to take advantage of her."

I remember being in the mountains of Afghanistan on a mission with the Rangers. Our group of four had been ambushed by insurgents and the gunfire aimed at us was coming from every possible direction. As the rocks above our heads began to crash down around us, I realized without some sort of miracle I was probably going to die in that cave. I have no shame in admitting I was scared at that moment. It wasn't how I wanted to die. Even with that experience in my background, having Tank standing inches from my face with his jaw held so tightly that little pieces of spittle were coming out of his mouth with every word about 'taking advantage' of Stephanie, I was terrified.

"I didn't take advantage of her," I defended myself.

"The evidence says otherwise," he disagreed.

I glanced around to be sure no one was listening before saying, "This was her doing, her idea, and it was in no way a part of anything else. I haven't touched her, other than the show we put on when her car went up in flames. I am not taking advantage of her."

He continued to stare at me with his nostrils flaring like a bull about to charge. He must have believed me though because his muscles relaxed marginally and he said, "Then consider this your warning. And if it comes to my attention that you _are_ beginning to push your position with her, then I'll hit first and ask questions once Bobby finishes reviving you."

He left before I could even respond. I decided to give up on my workout for the day. Tank had pretty much increased my heart rate to an aerobic level anyway. Maybe I should just start running outside from now on.


	5. Trust Me

_All the typical stuff still applies. JE created these characters; I'm just using them for fun._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I can't find the right words to say thank you for working as the beta on this story. See…it's just one more example of how vital your work it._

**Chapter 5 – Trust Me**

_Stephanie's POV_

When I stepped out of the bathroom ready for the day, I walked into the kitchen and jumped with a scream as a man in black was leaning against the kitchen cabinet.

"Good morning, Beautiful," Lester said with a smile.

"Les, you scared the crap out of me," I told him with my hand over my heart. Now there was a rare expression that made sense. I didn't need to change my clothes, but I could understand being so frightened by these guys sneaking up on me that I might need to one day. "Why are you here?"

If anything, my follow-up question only made him smile more. He picked up a white bag which I knew contained a confectionary bribe of some sort and said, "I brought you breakfast and some wheels to tide you over for a while until you figure out what you're going to do for transportation."

Oh yea, I guess I did need a car. I don't know how I thought I was going to get to the office this morning. My manners kicked in as I was taking my first bite of a glazed doughnut and I managed to push enough of it to the side in my mouth to say, "Thank you," in an almost intelligible voice.

Lester pulled me to him and walked us over to the couch to sit down. I leaned into him because we had the kind of friendship that was solid and it always included Lester holding me. Over the last few months, he had picked me up more than once and taken care of me when I felt like my heart wasn't going to keep beating. I trusted him, and as I was learning, there were very few men that I could honestly say that about any more.

He let me finish my doughnut in peace and then asked, "How are you with this whole assignment?"

I shrugged. "I want to help those girls and keep anyone else from having to suffer through that."

"That's not what I asked." He pointed out. "There was never a doubt in my mind that you would want to help, but how are you with the whole idea of having a boyfriend publicly?"

I tried to use a shrug again as an answer but Lester called me on it. "Oh no you don't. When Ranger first proposed sending you in to help dig up some information, I was worried about the fact that for this to work you would need to be in a relationship. Do you think Vince was the right choice?"

I turned to see him better and asked, "Why? Do you know something about him that I don't?"

This time it was Lester's turn to shrug. "I know lots of things about him that you don't know, but none of them are pertinent to this case. We served in the Army together and I think he'll do a good job with you. I also think he'll take it very seriously and will watch over you. When Ranger told me Vince was your choice from the list I thought you'd picked the right one from your options."

That brought up a question that had been bugging me. "Why wouldn't you do it? Did you not want to spend that kind of time with me?"

Lester's arms came around me immediately with vice like strength. "I would love to spend that kind of time with you, but I thought about it and figured this might be good for you to step out and learn to trust people again. You and I already have our shit together, but you need to learn to put yourself out there with someone else and see that they won't let you down."

"But he's just a work partner," I tried to disagree.

"Yea, but for this to work you are going to have to let him in. He's going to have to go to your parent's house. He's going to need to spend time with Mary Lou, Lula, and Connie. And he's going to have to be around you in front of the guys. For it to look real, you are going to have to relax and let him in." Lester instructed.

"But this is just an assignment. When it's over, he'll go back to his life and I'll go back to mine. There's not a place for me to let him in to. This is just pretend. I'll play the role and do everything I can to make it work, but he's not interested in me and when it's just us I'm not going to pretend any different." I argued.

Les took a deep breath as though he were slightly frustrated with my answer. "I wasn't interested in dating you either, yet you let me in."

"I didn't let you in," I countered. "You picked the lock and then knocked down the door. You're in and you refuse to leave."

That earned me a kiss on the head. "You got that right and no body is going to take my place, but I can't give you what you need."

When I finally came to terms with the fact that Ranger and I would never be a couple, and as a result of that, I also realized Joe and I shouldn't even try to be one, the fact that I was now alone was a hard pill to swallow. I had gone from feeling like a vibrant woman with two hot options practically fighting over me to feeling like something on the scratch and dent table. My price might be attractive to someone, but they would have to get over the fact that I was obviously damaged goods first.

Les began dropping by my apartment almost daily. At first he would bring food and make up an excuse to stay. He literally forced me to keep going and not fall into a depressed state of some sort. Of course, the flip side was that I clung to him like a life line and shut out everyone else. I had seen what people were really like, how they could look at you with smiles on their faces and have such malicious self-interested intent for the interaction. Because of that I refused to let anyone into my heart again. Why bother to let them get to really know you if they were going to pass judgment on you and then try to change you into what they wanted you to be? It was easier to just be bubbly and friendly all the time and keep everything else bottled up nicely. I shook my head to clear it to be sure I didn't accidently say my new take on life aloud.

"And Vince can give me what I need?" I challenged, wondering where Les was going with this little chat.

"He can give you a safe place to practice opening up again. Just because you trust somebody doesn't mean you have to date them. But I'd like for someone else to see the beautiful heart that I get to see. It's too special for you to keep hidden," my cryptic friend advised.

I was quiet for too long so he added, "Plus I know what a kickass job you're going to do and I figured you wouldn't believe it if I told you, so it would be nice for you to hear it from a neutral third party."

I laughed at his attempt at flattery. "I'll try," I finally managed to say. That was all the promise I was willing to make for fear that I would be lying to someone I had never deceived.

We chatted for a few more minutes until his cell phone buzzed. He looked down and checked the newly received text and smiled at whatever it said. I loved that smile and he only gave it to one person. "Let me guess," I said. "Your ride is here?"

"You got it in one," he confirmed standing up and drawing me into a hug. "We're going to be at the lake this weekend. Do you want to come over on Saturday?"

I thought about it. I loved his house on the lake and always felt like a princess when I spent time with them there. "I'll have to think about it and let you know. I don't know how it would look for me to run off over the weekend when I'm supposed to be in a new relationship."

"Vince knows the way, he's come up before." Les pushed. "It might be fun to spend some time with him around people that know the truth. You can just relax and do what seems natural without having to pretend."

That was the whole purpose of the lake house according to the explanation Lester had given me the first time I was there. It was designed to be a place where one could absolutely relax and pretending wasn't allowed. Anything that happened once the front door closed had to be real and honest. It was like walking through the wardrobe into a magic land. "I'll ask him about it and let you know," I finally conceded. "If he's up for it, I'd love to drive up."

That seemed good enough for him so he gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and he was gone, leaving me to find some shoes to go with my shorts and sleeveless button up shirt.

I was nervous about getting out of my loaner RangeMan car now that I was at the office. I'd put a little extra time into my hair and make up so I knew I looked alright, or at least as alright as was possible for a woman currently sweating in a black Explorer.

I was already worried about the questions I might get from the guys, but when I finished eating the doughnuts Les brought and walked back to the kitchen to get some coffee I found the note from Vince mentioning a hickie that I gave him and I had to sit down and focus on my breathing to keep from passing out.

I remembered dreaming about all the ways the guys tried to figure out if Vince and I were really together and Hector kept saying unless he could see proof of us sleeping together then he wouldn't believe it. When I asked what counted as proof Hector said, "A woman always leaves a mark on her lover if he's worth it." So I had been thinking about how funny it would be to try and get a bruise on his neck. I didn't think I actually did it, but his note certainly made it sound like I had. Hopefully I hadn't just screwed up the whole job by losing my mind while I was asleep.

I rode the elevator up alone which was a relief, but when I stepped out there was an immediate hush across the floor which told me they had definitely been talking about me. I knew there was nothing I could do to keep the blush from spreading across my face so I walked as quickly as possible to my desk, put my purse in the drawer with my stash of candy, and then turned on my computer. While it was booting up I walked down the hall in search of Vince.

He was on the phone when I walked up behind him so I hopped up on the edge of his desk to wait. He spun around and smiled at me since I must have made enough noise to alert him of my approach. When he hung up he scooted his chair closer and I couldn't help but notice the amount of people walking by slowly.

"Sorry I had to slip out this morning," he began with his eyes following the path of Zero as he passed the cubicle.

I was shocked at how blatant they were being, which irritated me, so I waited for Hal to walk by and slipped off Vince's desk and into his lap instead. It not only gave the appearance of a happy couple but it allowed me to get my lips close enough to Vince's ear that no one could hear what we were saying.

I could feel Vince laughing behind me so I figured he knew exactly what I was doing. "Tell me you were joking about the hickie."

He didn't reply but he pulled the collar away from his neck and stretched his head to give me a better view. I touched the bruised skin with my finger lightly and wondered why something so embarrassing was also making me so happy. Joe had a thing about hickies, and while he was okay with giving them, he never wanted any on him. Something about needing to keep a professional appearance and it not being a good idea for a cop to look like a woman got the best of him. Thinking that I had done this and Vince let me, apparently with no real issues about it, only made me wish I could remember it.

I forced my finger to stop touching him and said, "I'm so sorry. I had this weird dream where Hector said the only way he'd believe we were together was if I had marked you, but I had no idea I'd really done it."

"Stop," he interrupted me. "I knew you were asleep and it's no big deal. If anything, it got the attention of several guys while I was working out and it only added another layer of credibility to our story."

"But you shouldn't have to worry about being attacked in your sleep. Tomorrow I'll stay on the couch," I told him.

His arms tightened around me even though I didn't see anyone walking by at the moment. "You will do no such thing. Even in your sleep you were working on this case, and you did something helpful. I'm sure we can work out the sleeping arrangements if you aren't comfortable, but nothing needs to be changed for me. I wasn't attacked, but I do have to admit, it woke me up."

He sounded amused about the mark and pigheaded about the bed so I let it go. How did stubbornness get to be associated with the heads of pigs anyway? I mean, they're often seen as lazy or dirty, but I didn't realize they were stubborn too. Wasn't that a mule? Honestly, it's a wonder any of us know what we're talking about with all of these ridiculous expressions.

I leaned my head into Vince's neck and took a deep breath, surprised to smell polo. I must have made a noise because he asked what I was thinking. I decided I didn't want to tell him the truth, which would have been I was thinking about how great you smell and how nice it is to be in arms that are so tender and strong. But I decided to go with, "As much as I'd like to stay here and tease the guys, I guess I should get busy."

He relaxed his arms slightly and said, "I hope you'll tell me what you were really thinking when I see you tomorrow after work."

I sat up, wishing I could just disappear and tried to change the subject. "What are we going to do?"

"We'll talk later today and figure that out, okay?" He asked, obviously at a loss about the answer to that question.

I jumped up to leave just as Brett walked by. I couldn't let the opportunity pass without taking advantage of it so I said, "We can do anything you'd like as long as it ends the same way last night did."

Then I turned and walked away before either one of them could say a word. I hoped Vince had the good sense to look satisfied instead of shocked with the bomb I dropped in front of his usual partner.

I walked into Tank's office and hopped up on the edge of his desk too. I knew everybody had guest chairs, but for some reason I rarely used them.

"What can I do for you?" Tank asked with a bit of amusement in his voice at my current location on top of a report he had been using.

"I need some information about dance classes," I said cryptically.

Tank smiled and opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a gift certificate made out to me. "Happy Birthday," he said even though it was no where close. "I hope you enjoy this little gift at the new studio in town to get a little exercise and have some fun with that new boyfriend of yours."

It was a certificate for ten lessons over the next five weeks in a class called 'Special Weddings'. It looked like I only needed to confirm we would be there and we could start anytime.

Figuring I should verify that I said only, "Today?"

"No time like the present," he agreed nodding his head. "Any problems so far?" He asked as a follow up.

I shook my head no and added, "I think yesterday did most of the work for us. Now, I just can't screw it up."

Tank's face hardened and he stood up and went to the door to close it. "You know that isn't possible, right?"

I snorted as a response. I mean, has he not been paying attention to the number of times RangeMan has had to bail me out of trouble when I screwed something up?

"We know you can do this or we wouldn't have asked. Clearly, you've already proven us right, so all you have to do is keep going one step at the time and keep me in the loop for each of those steps." Tank instructed.

"Well, then it sounds like I need to make Vince aware of the fact that our lessons are starting and then I was planning on running a search on Maggie myself to see if there was any more information I could dig up on her." I admitted giving him my plan for the day.

Tank smiled. "Let me know if that search digs up anything." I hopped up from my spot and said, "And I'll call the studio now to see if we can get into today's class."

"I'll expect a full report tomorrow," Tank added as I began to walk away.

I dialed the number on the certificate Tank gave me and asked the friendly voice on the other end of the phone if it was too late to join the class for tonight. She assured me there was room and gave me a list of things to bring. I had trouble keeping up with her to write down, 'no shorts or miniskirts, dress pants or dresses at least at the knee, modest high heels, men's dress shoes, water, the certificate, and towels.'

"The studio is air conditioned, isn't it?" I asked, concerned about the water and towels being necessary.

She laughed again and assured me it was, but that many people found dancing like this to be hard work and even though it was air conditioned one could still get in quite a work out. Perfect, I knew this job seemed too easy so far. Now I was being tricked into working out. It was a good thing Ranger had left for a few weeks or he would be getting a piece of my mind about this.

I sent Vince an e-mail informing him the classes would begin tonight at 7:00 and giving him the list of things he needed. I got a fast response back saying he would pick me up at twenty 'til and we'd go together.

I spent the next hour running a basic search on Maggie to get a list of her friends and relatives in order to run searches on them. There had to be a reason they chose Trenton as the location for their new studio and I felt like that piece of information was important. I was able to find ties to a few people not highlighted in the original information from Ranger.

I had a decent list of names to dig into by three o'clock when it hit me; I had nothing at all to wear for the class tonight. I had all kinds of shoes, but none that I would really describe as modest high heels. I thought she described them as needing to be securely fastened with an ideal heel of two and half to three inches, and no sling backs. Well, it looked like I needed to go shopping for work. I love spending money with such a valid excuse about it.

I shut down my system, taking the list of names with me and went down to the garage to my borrowed car. At least driving a RangeMan vehicle meant the air conditioner was guaranteed to work. I tried to call Lula to see if she wanted to join me but her voicemail picked up and there was no answer at the bonds office. It looked like I was on my own today.

It took me two hours to find a steel blue dress that I thought would work that had a fitted bodice and a flowing skirt that fell at my knees. The top dipped enough to show what cleavage I could provide and the way it was designed looked like something Grace Kelly would have worn, so I thought it was perfect. The shoes were a little more of a struggle. I finally found a pair with a little ankle strap that were silver. The heel was three inches which would help to get me closer to eye level with Vince since he had a good six inches in height on me.

Satisfied that I had succeeded in preparing for at least tonight's class, I glanced at my watch and saw I only had an hour to get ready. I flew home as quickly as possible and laid everything out while I slipped in for a quick shower, a touch up shave, and a little extra work on my make-up. Unsure of what to do with my hair, I put it into a French twist and then pulled out a few pieces along the edges to hang as loose curls.

The dress and shoes together worked and I stood there looking at my reflection for a while, having a hard time believing it was me. When I got dressed for work occasions I was rarely this classy looking. I only hoped I wouldn't do anything stupid and prove to everyone in the class that I was really just a klutz in a costume.

A knock at the door got my attention and I realized the shoes may have been expensive, but they were so comfortable that they were worth every penny as I dashed to let in my visitor. I knew it was about time for Vince to show up so I just opened the door without checking first.

He stood there with his arms crossed, looking displeased about something. "What?" I asked, wondering if I had done something wrong. I quickly looked down and was assured that the dress wasn't tucked in somewhere revealing my underwear.

"You should have at least checked to see who was knocking. I could have been some psycho here to hurt you," he warned.

"That's right, because my psychos all tend to knock and wait patiently at the door in broad daylight," I bit back intentionally trying to get a rise out of him. I don't know why I was pushing him. I think it was because arguing with him was safe. I knew he wouldn't ignore me like Ranger did, or blow completely like Joe would. Yet trying to keep my wits about me and counter his words was exciting. I guessed this was what the guys felt like when they sparred together. They knew they weren't going to get seriously hurt, yet the excitement of fighting was still there.

"Just because it hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it isn't possible. The way you flung the door open would have allowed me to step in and inject you with a drug before you even got your hand off the door to defend yourself." He replied with his arms still crossed.

I wanted to see if I could get him to let go enough to move his hands. He was Italian after all. Restricting his hand motions was an intentional effort and I wanted him to lose that battle within himself to stand stoically.

"And yet, here I stand perfectly fine so obviously I have the ability to tell the difference in the knock between a person who wants to hurt me and someone who is here to pick me up," I said with a hand in the air.

His jaw tightened and I waited to see if he'd snap. "You can't tell the difference based on their knock. What does that even mean?"

"A crazy person would have a more evil sounding knock, and you guys have a much nicer one," I said realizing how insane that sounded as it came out of my mouth.

I was proud of myself for holding in the smile when his arms broke loose and a hand matched mine in the air to say, "That is the reason we worry about you all the time," his voice raised.

I didn't want to fight anymore now that I'd won my silent victory so I stepped aside in essence inviting him in and said, "Well if it bothers you guys so much all you had to do was say something and I'd try to remember."

He let out a long breath and followed me in. I grabbed my bag, which had a bottle of water in it, but I refused to believe I would need a towel to sop up a downpour of sweat from waltzing so I called myself ready. Just before we got to the truck downstairs he turned to me and said, "You look really nice, by the way."

And just like that we were back to normal. He wasn't holding a grudge or still struggling to find his center, he said what he needed to say and all was well. I always wished it were possible to fight and then be done with it. Maybe with Vince it was. Of course, that wasn't really a fight because I was only baiting him for the sport of it. Then again, nothing about this whole set up was real so I needed to keep that in mind.

The ride was fine with him giving me a few details about his take down with Brett and some of the reactions from people in the gym this morning. I gave him the limited info I'd gotten from my search on Maggie, and by then we were pulling up to the studio.

I didn't move so he made no attempt to get out of the truck either. Finally I asked, "Have you ever done this kind of dancing before?"

He smiled and said, "Sort of. My mom forced my brother and I to take classes when I was younger, but I can't say I've used it since."

"I had the same thing when my mom was still trying to make me into the perfect Burg wife material, but there isn't a lot of box stepping going on at the clubs so I haven't used it since."

We got out and when we got to the door of the studio he took my hand in his and squeezed it. "I'm sorry in advance if I hurt you in there," I confessed suddenly nervous that I would do something to screw this up.

He gave me a smile that nearly made my knees go weak. I'd never seen him light up like that and my mind was searching for things to say to give me another glance at his grin. "No worries," he joked. "My shoes have steel toes."

And that was how we walked in the studio, holding hands and laughing with easy sincere smiles on our faces.

We were greeted by a woman who looked exactly like the picture of Maggie I'd pulled up this morning. "Welcome to our wedding class, you're just in time." She showed us where to sit our bags and then had us stand in a circle with four other couples who all seemed nervous and uncomfortable. By contrast we must have made quite an entrance.

"When is your big day?" Maggie asked, obviously pleased to have a couple that seemed happy to be there.

"Our day for what?" Vince asked with a confused look on his face.

"Your wedding, of course," she said without missing a beat. Apparently the other couples were in this class to dance at their own wedding.

I decided to answer since Vince seemed to have temporarily lost his voice. I guess I wasn't the only one who broke out in hives over the idea of getting married. "We were actually given a gift certificate to take this class because a friend thought we would enjoy the time together. We aren't engaged."

Her face fell slightly and I couldn't help but try to plant a seed of our cover while she was still focused on us. "We can't get engaged until we save up some money first. Vince seems to insist on me having a nice ring first and there is no money in our budget for that yet."

Sometimes it was too easy. You could see the wheels in her head turning at my statement. Vince lifted my hand to his mouth and kissed my knuckles with his warm mouth before saying, "But that's the only reason we aren't married."

"It is shame that money has to slow down a couple as lovely as you two," she said still watching us closely.

"In the meantime we'll have to content ourselves in learning to dance now so we can show off at his cousin's wedding at the end of the summer," I said before finishing off our cover. "It sure would be nice to be able to announce our engagement when we are surrounded by his family."

"You never know my dear. Money has a way of working itself out when there is enough love involved." I wanted to puke at her fake encouragement of our love.

When I looked back at Vince he had that smile on his face and as she walked away he winked at me. I knew he was telling me I had done a good job of establishing our cover so quickly. Normally I would have basked in the praise of someone when I managed to do something without incident, but this time I was more interested in the easy way we worked together.

I know Les said I should trust Vince and let him in, but it was so hard to do. I wanted to. I truly believed we could have a great time together because I'd never met anyone whose temperament seemed to match mine so perfectly. But that little voice in the back of my head was saying that was the most important reason of all to keep him out. It was too easy to relax around him. Just as I'd thought that, Maggie turned on the music and instructed us to not worry about proper steps since she just wanted to see how we all moved together. Vince took me in his arms and pulled me close, leading my body where he wanted us to go.

For an assignment that thus far I had seemed to excel in, I was suddenly faced with the fact that keeping the distance between us was getting harder. When I looked at him he smiled gently again and said, "Relax Steph, I'm not going to lead you into the wall. Trust me."

I took a deep breath at his choice of words at the end. I decided that just for the class I would try. When we gathered our things to walk out I could put the barriers back, but while the music was playing I was going to let it lead me.


	6. Dancing and Revelations

_JE created these characters and deserves to receive all the credit._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I can't thank you enough for being the chief idea bouncer off-er (Is that a word? See, yet one more reason why your proofing skills are so important) and beta for this story._

**Chapter 6 – Dancing and Revelations**

_Vince's POV_

When Ranger approached me about this assignment I was excited about the opportunity to do something meaningful to rid the streets of a dangerous drug distributor. But when he got into the details of what would be required I was concerned about the dance lessons. I mean, I've got moves, but it takes the right partner to make a structured dance fun and I wondered how Steph would do being told how she should move.

It was a shame Maggie was in this drug ring because she was a fantastic dance instructor. We spent the first ten minutes just dancing however we wanted to for a few sampled selections of music, allowing her to see how we moved together as partners. The first few seconds Steph seemed nervous and uptight. I'd seen her at clubs and knew she could dance so I told her to trust me.

I could feel her take a deep breath as though trusting someone was a hard thing for her. I hated to think of why that was. But when she opened her eyes once more I felt her relax and begin to move with me. When Maggie turned off the music I was disappointed because I was having a great time.

The instruction of stance and attitude for the waltz, our first dance of the series we would learn, was done quickly and then the music was started once more and Maggie came to us individually to further instruct. I couldn't help but notice she seemed to work with us a little more than the others. I didn't think it was because we necessarily needed more instruction, it was more that we were the only couple getting it so she could offer us greater insight into how the dance should feel and how our bodies should move.

I loved it when she talked about letting the man lead. It was Stephanie's job to mold to me and to pick up on the subtle changes in my body to know where we were going to move. She even had Stephanie shut her eyes so that I could lead her blind. If anything it made it easier. I could feel Stephanie stop fighting my control as she relaxed more into me allowing us to move as one. The mirrors along one wall of the studio allowed me to watch us and I had to admit it was like something from one of those old movies my mom was such a fan of.

When the hour and a half was over I felt like I had gotten a much better workout than I managed in the gym this morning and the way Steph was glowing was simply beautiful. Strangely, I was disappointed to be told we were done for the night and I had to wait until Tuesday to move with her in my arms like that again.

I pulled out my water bottle and handed Steph the towel I had in my bag. She hesitated and then took it from me and pressed it against her face, blotting the perspiration instead of wiping it away like I would have. When she finished she handed it back to me and offered a shy thank you with her head down as though she were embarrassed about something. I didn't want to make her uncomfortable so I didn't push what was going on.

"Did you have dinner before we came?" I asked, hoping we could grab a bite together.

Her forehead pulled together as she thought about it. "I had a few peanut butter crackers and half a carrot."

I looked at her strangely when she answered making her ask, "What? Peanut butter is a great source of protein. It's a good snack."

I had to smile at that defense and explained my response. "I wasn't concerned about the crackers; I just couldn't picture you eating a carrot."

Her eyes narrowed like she was considering arguing the point and a part of me wished she would. Something about watching her eyes dance when she was angry was fun for me and once she was finished yelling she seemed to let it go. A woman who didn't sulk was a rare thing and it made arguing with her that much more fun.

Instead she backed down and confessed, "Actually, it was a baby carrot and I only bit it in half because it seemed too big for Rex before I dropped the rest in his cage."

Something about that struck me as hilarious and I busted out laughing. "Come on," I said as we packed up. "Let's get some dinner."

Maggie was watching everyone pack up and leave and I saw Steph glance back at her as well so I put my arm around Steph's shoulders and drew her to my side to plant a kiss on the side of her head. She rested her head on my shoulder and let me guide her out to the truck. I could tell I was walking slower than normal and I told myself it was out of consideration for the heels Steph was wearing, but if I was honest I don't think that's really why.

I pulled out and took us to a little dinner about half way between the office and Steph's apartment. It was an all night dive and a lot of us guys would stop by after night time calls to hang out and eat a snack that wasn't on Ranger's approve list of healthy foods.

She looked at me and smiled. "I'm hoping the fact that you brought me here means you're not going to order a salad."

I laughed again and wondered why I didn't laugh more. I liked joking around and used to be known as a bit of a clown in school. It wasn't until I started doing missions in the Army that the more serious side of my personality took over.

"No, I'm definitely not going to order a salad. They make a great bacon double cheeseburger and you can get Cajun salt on their fries. I think after an hour and a half work out, we deserve a little grease." I told her as I held the door open to walk in the dinner.

The whole restaurant only held eight tables along the windows and a dozen stools at the bar. Usually, I just ate at the counter but I couldn't ask her to sit on a barstool in those shoes, so I led us to the corner booth and sat with my back against the wall and my face to the door. A waitress brought us a couple of laminated menus that had a slick greasy feel to them despite her wiping them off before handing them to us.

"Is this alright?" I asked Stephanie, suddenly unsure if I should have considered where she wanted to go.

"It's perfect," she assured me with her eyes already glazing over the menu.

Watching Stephanie eat is an event unto itself. She isn't shy about her appetite or her appreciation of good food. She gave me an award winning moan with her first bite of burger and then added to the audio by granting me a visual of her tongue licking the side of her hand where some juice from the burger was running down. My God, I'd never known a person that exuded sensuality like her.

We finished dinner, talking about very little of any importance, yet never having a lull in the conversation. When the check came her hand went to her purse instinctually and I made a growling sound of displeasure. Surely she remembered our conversation at Shorty's.

She rolled her eyes and said, "That's right, I forgot for the length of this assignment your going Cleaver on me."

"What?" I asked, completely confused.

"You know, Ward and June Cleaver…Leave it to Beaver?" She offered as an incomplete explanation. "You are pushing some kind of outdated macho crap on me because you think in order to show your fake emotion for me that you have to pay for everything. I don't get it and since that show aired it hasn't been the norm, so I don't see why you're making such a big deal out of it."

I threw the money down to cover the food and a generous tip and we stood to walk out, both knowing this conversation was far from over. In the truck I answered. "I don't think it's outdated to want to take care of someone. And even if it were, why is it so wrong to want to provide for the person you are in a relationship with?"

"But we aren't in a relationship," she practically screamed. The tone of her voice was edgy and I loved it. If anything, it was making the problem in my jeans from watching her eat her way through that burger return with a vengeance.

"We are to give the appearance of it at all times, and there is no way I'd be in a relationship with a woman so stubborn she wouldn't let me pay for her food," I explained.

"Why? Why is it such an insult to your masculinity for me to use some of the money I earned to cover the food that I eat? I'm not complaining about you opening the doors or carrying the bags," she offered as though it related somehow.

"What you're saying is that if we were in a relationship you wouldn't accept the way that I show affection. You want to keep your independence and you refuse to allow someone to provide for you in any way," I replied with my voice increasing in volume.

"Arrggh!" She growled. I loved that sound. I wasn't one of those wild men who only wanted animalistic sex, at least I didn't think I did. But hearing that sound made me think of angry, against the wall, driving hard sex and suddenly I was concerned that the zipper in my khaki's might burst.

Before I could get too far gone in trying to reign in my libido she continued. "If a woman allows a man to provide for her then she might get used to it."

"What the hell does that mean? I think that's the point. You should be able to depend upon your man," I said as though she had just made my argument for me.

I wasn't prepared for her voice to soften and her to reply, "But then what happens when they leave and you're alone and have to provide for yourself again? It's easier to just take care of myself, depend on myself, and then I'm never in danger of being abandoned or disappointed again."

Fortunately we were in her parking lot by the time she finished talking, so I pulled in the spot in front of her door and threw the truck in park to turn and face her. I reached out and took her hand causing her eyes to get larger. "I don't know what the guys in your life have done to you, and I know we are being forced together because of this assignment, but I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to abandon you."

We sat in silence with me holding her hand in mine and her mind obviously reeling a mile a minute. I'd never understood that expression until this minute. I always associated reeling with fishing, as in using a rod and reel, but I suddenly got it from the look on her face. I could imagine a movie reel running in her head, showing her all of the men she'd ever trusted and how they had let her down in one way or another. I prided myself on my control but suddenly I wished for just one of the bastards who had hurt her to be in front of me now. I could use an outlet.

Finally she shook her head and said, "I'm sure you won't do anything while we're working on this case. But then it will be over and you'll go back to your life and I'll go back to mine, which is exactly how it should be. In the meantime, I need to be sure I keep a measure of independence so that I don't forget this is just make-believe."

Sometimes a man just needs to be quiet. Keeping your mouth shut can often give the appearance that you understand and are being silently supportive. Unfortunately, this was probably one of those times, but my mouth didn't get the memo. "One would think if we learn to trust each other during the time we're working together, then we aren't really pretending. I don't abandon my friends, Steph. Ask Lester or Bobby. I don't have many people that I consider real friends, but those two count. Talk to them about what I'm like after the initial easy part of getting to know each other is over. Don't clump me in with all the shitty guys you've known without giving me a chance to prove what I'm made of."

She was silent for a minute before saying, "I don't think we're talking about paying for food anymore are we?"

There was a faint hint of a smile, as though she were begging me to let this conversation go and accept her joke as an out. "We were never talking about the food because it was already established that I would pay for everything." I winked at her hoping she'd go back to a playful banter if that was what she wanted.

After verifying her apartment was clear she offered me some water and we sat down on her couch. I watched her unbuckle her shoes and then wiggle her perfect little feet as though the freedom of being bare was too wonderful to deny.

"Any thoughts on the weekend?" I asked her, knowing we should get some kind of plan together.

"I have to put in an appearance at my parent's house. I guess tomorrow is as good a day as any for that," she replied with about as much enthusiasm as I felt.

"What time should I pick you up?" I wondered, remembering something about six o'clock being the magic dinner hour for her mother.

"Five thirty would work, but you don't have to go. There is no reason to subject yourself to the madness of my family yet," Steph offered as an out.

"I'll be there," I said effectively stopping the discussion about meeting with her family. I didn't want to go, but I knew it would be necessary to keep the cover of our relationship. "What about Saturday?"

She started pulling the label off her bottle of water and said, "Lester invited us to spend the afternoon at his house on the lake. He said you'd been there before."

"Yea, I've gone a few times," I agreed. "It's beautiful, and as hot as it's been lately, it might be nice to be on the water. Do you want to go?" I wondered how much she knew about that house.

Steph caught my eyes with hers and looked at me for a few minutes before saying, "Yes, they brought me there a few times a few months back when things were a little shaky for me. I always have a good time there."

"Should I plan on staying over Friday night after dinner, then we can figure something out for the late morning and we'll head up to the lake later in the day?" I suggested as a plan.

She nodded, still seeming reserved and obviously holding back. She was playing her role perfectly in public and I didn't want to push her now but I could tell she was hiding something and there was a damn frightening reason for her struggles to open up so I let it go. I was smart enough to know that some battles can only be won with the right plan and forcing this before I had one would only cause loss for us both.

I had an early shift on Friday so I reluctantly told her I had an 0500 monitor call so I should probably stay at Haywood tonight. Understanding, she stood and walked me to the door. "You'll lock up behind me?" I asked, hoping to get at least a smile from her at my harping about her safety.

"Yes Dad, I'll lock the apartment and I'll check the peep hole before I open the door again," she said rolling her eyes.

"Buonanotte Bella," I said as a parting goodbye.

"Goodnight Handsome," she replied with a grin. Apparently my surprise at her understanding of my words 'goodnight beautiful' wasn't hidden well enough.

"I said I wasn't fluent, but I am still half Italian and my father would never forgive me if I didn't at least remember that much," she explained. When I smiled at her answer she said, "I had a good time dancing with you Vince."

"Me troppo Bella," I replied and turned to leave. Hopefully she'd know I just told I had a good time too.

Walking away I also realized I was calling her the same name Lester did, just in Italian. It fit her and she didn't seem to blanch at it. I wasn't one of those mushy guys that did pet names, but somehow that one just slipped out. Perhaps it was just the light of the moon. My Pop said the moon could make a grown man do things the sun would never permit. Now I was beginning to understand what he was saying.

At Haywood I went straight to four, intending to go to my apartment and crash. But when I opened the door I saw Bobby and Lester sitting in my living room waiting on me. "Did I issue an invitation I was unaware of?" I asked, trying to hold onto my temper. Although we all possessed the skills to break into each other's apartments, we rarely if ever did it. It was a sign of respect for each other to allow us to have a place that was genuinely ours. The fact that they were waiting on me in my apartment made a warning bell go off in my head that was overriding my first reaction to throw them out.

"Have a seat," Bobby said pointing to the recliner beside the sofa. As I passed by he lifted a beer bottle from the case in front of them and held up a Sam Adams for me. I took a long draw and waited for them to explain what was so important they had to break into my home to talk to me.

Lester finally spoke up and said, "You're in a damned hard spot and it's taken me two days to decide if I should kick your ass as a warning of what would happen if you hurt Stephanie, or if I should help you."

I took another drink before asking, "Are you planning on letting me know how the vote came out or are you just putting me on notice to watch my back?" I guess the anger was winning over the warning bells after all.

Bobby jumped in, probably sensing how easily Les and I could come to blows if somebody didn't diffuse the tension in the room. "Look man, we don't want to betray Stephanie. But you need to know a few things about her if you're going to be able to help her."

Of course they would say the one thing that would take away my anger and pique my curiosity. Maybe I was a cat in a previous life. I'd always been more than just a little curious and got in trouble more than I cared to admit for sticking my nose in where it didn't belong. The Army taught me enough control to weigh the risks before jumping in, but I still wondered about a hell of a lot.

My wandering mind wasn't lost on the two men in beside me. "This is a waste of time," Lester finally said. "I can't do this." When he tried to stand up I saw he was definitely not steady on his feet. It had been a couple of years since I'd seen Santos drunk and even then it was after we got back from a FUBAR'd mission where I'd carried him out of a jungle bleeding and on the verge of death.

He'd told me to leave him and gave me his dog tags to bring to Bobby. I almost did it too because it certainly didn't look like he was going to make it. But that nagging voice in the back of my mind told me he was a friend and I never left my friends. So I slung him over my shoulder and we made it back to the rendezvous point. Once we were in the safety of our camp, I released Lester to Bobby's care as the medic and stood guard over the door while he worked. It was a couple hours later before Bobby came out covered in blood that I knew wasn't his.

I realized then I'd been holding onto Lester's dog tags so I walked to Bobby and held out my hand. They say war is hell and that's an expression you can't explain to somebody unless they've lived through it. The look in Bobby's eyes at that moment is how I define what hell is. He knew then that Lester had given me those tags, thinking he wasn't going to make it. Based on the amount of time he'd spent working on his friend there was a chance Lester still might not pull through.

He was frozen to the spot where he was standing so I closed the distance and put the tags in Bobby's hand saying softly, "He told me to leave him there and to give you these. I refused to give up on him, but I will abide by his wishes for the tags." Bobby's hand clasped around mine with the tags pressed in our palms between us. We stayed like that for a couple of minutes before he took an unsteady deep breath and then pulled back. Just before he went back in the room with Santos he turned back and said, "Thanks, man."

Lester had a hard time after we got back to the States after that mission. We'd been betrayed by someone in our team and that betrayal almost cost him his life. He shut down for a while after that, only opening up to Bobby and on a few rare occasions, me.

Seeing him weaving in front of my couch reminded me of that time and I realized whatever they had planned on telling me must be big if he needed to soften the pain with alcohol. Brown reach up, grabbed Lester's belt in the back, and yanked him back to the couch.

They had a brief stare down before I cleared my throat, wondering if I was needed any longer for this conversation. Bobby looked at me and said, "We don't want to hurt Stephanie and spilling the details of her secrets would be unforgivable in her eyes. Therefore we can't give you the whole story because I think we're the only two men she still trusts. But she can't go on like this for much longer so we wanted to just warn you in general terms about what you're up against."

A part of me wondered if I should refuse the intel and tell them if Steph wanted me to know about her, then she would tell me herself. But the soldier in me recognized I couldn't fight this battle without a plan and I had nothing to go off of.

Les spoke next. "A few months ago I had a feeling something was wrong. I knew my cousin had finally told her that they would never have a real relationship and I knew it hurt her bad."

I had to assume he meant Ranger since they were related some how. The fact that Steph and Ranger went from steamy scenes in back alleys to barely speaking for a while wasn't a big secret around the office.

Les kept talking. "She tried to act like it hadn't hurt but she sucks at hiding that kind of thing and one night, about two weeks after I started checking up on her every day, she was literally on the floor of her kitchen with her head on Rex's cage. She'd fallen asleep crying and was about as broken as anybody I'd ever seen. Ranger hadn't tried to hurt her, if anything he was protecting her, but when he pulled back it made her re-examine all the other guys and the truth of that was too much. She started telling me about her past with men; how every single one of them had hurt her or disappointed her in some way and she had managed to make it her fault instead of putting the blame on the jackasses instead."

I wasn't overly surprised by anything he'd said. Stephanie rarely blamed people for stuff and I knew someone had hurt her pretty badly because of how hard it was for her to open up.

"It took me a month to get her put back together enough to function in her own way. At the time I thought I was helping, but when I stood back and looked at it I realized I'd probably done more damage to her than anyone else," he confessed.

Bobby's knee hit Lester's getting him to explain that comment. "She was copying my way of putting on a show during the day, being whatever people expected you to be but hiding away anything real. No real emotion, no genuine openness. She wasn't as good at it as I am because her genuine concern had her always caring for others. But even that was a cover for the fact that she focused on watching over everyone else to keep them from thinking she needed any help." He shook his head before adding, "Brilliant, really."

I had to agree. From the outside, she looked like the best adjusted, most empathetic person I'd ever met and to a certain degree it was still true. But when he framed it as a clever cover to keep people from asking about how she was doing, he was right. It was a brilliant disguise.

"When this job came up, Ranger came to me and offered me the chance to be her partner," he looked at Bobby and raised his eyebrow. Bobby nodded to keep him talking.

"I almost did it because I knew she'd need to be watched over; that an assignment where she had to have a believable boyfriend might require her to let her guard down and I knew she would trust me not to hurt her. But someone," with that he cut his eyes to Bobby who smiled in a guilty way, "Someone convinced me not to do it. He thought if she had the right partner she might learn to trust someone again."

Bobby then added, "I also told him that we'd stay on top of the case and we'd know if her partner had failed to deserve her trust. And if she got hurt I promised to stay out of the way while he beat the shit out of him." I heard every bit of the threat in that sentence. Hell, a deaf man would have heard it.

I nodded and Lester continued. "Ranger insisted on letting her pick her own partner and when she picked you I was relieved because I knew you wouldn't give up on her. Then I realized I couldn't remember seeing you with the same chick more than once so you didn't exactly have a good track record with women and I started to worry I'd made a mistake in letting her do this without me."

Bobby jumped in. "What he means is, aside from the fact that this is Stephanie and she's beyond just being special, she's hurt and we hoped this assignment would not only give her the opportunity to show off her skills under pressure, but it would also give her a chance to reconnect with that part of her heart she's trying so hard to close off. We know it's not what you signed on for, but we hoped you'd be willing to try to help her."

I let my head fall back against the chair. I was in over my head. I wasn't a therapist; I was an infantry man with problems of my own. But I couldn't deny loving the feel of her in my arms tonight on the dance floor and I knew there was something she was struggling to fight.

"How?" I finally broke the silence to ask. "How am I supposed to help her?"

Lester made a sound I didn't recognize so I lifted my head to look at him. "Treat her like you treated me. Don't give up on her, and don't walk away even when it looks hopeless. If she starts to trust again and you abandon her, then we'll never get her back in one piece."

"I couldn't walk away from her, it's not who I am," I reminded him solemnly.

"Oh yea," Bobby added. "We aren't saying you need to really start dating her, but just try to show her that all men aren't total worthless assholes. We aren't exactly the best examples of what a man should be. She knows us too well." It was at that moment that I realized Steph must know all about them and I had to smile at the fact that even in light of their less than typical lifestyle, she had no trouble accepting them for who they were.

If ever there was a person worth fighting for, it was her. Special didn't begin to do her justice and seeing how she never failed to meet us where we were, and accept us despite our numerous faults, I wondered how long it had been since someone had tried to do the same thing for her. Most of us put her on a pedestal as being too good to be true, and while every woman deserved to be adored, that wasn't really fair to her either. We were, in essence, demanding that she be a super woman of sorts and not accepting her where she was at this moment but imagining her to be someone else. I was as guilty of that as the rest.

Suddenly I had a new mission. Steph had proven herself more than capable of running this job and getting us in a position to get the info on the drug ring. My job was going to be protecting her in every possible way. I was determined to treat her in the way she deserved and to help her realize that not only could she trust someone again, but that not every one was as worthless of that trust as the men in her past.

Now I just had to pray I could live up to my mission.


	7. Just Desserts

_JE created the characters below. I don't get any credit, except perhaps for the trouble they're in._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) thank you so much for your patient and thorough beta skills on this story. _

**Chapter 7 – Just Desserts**

_Stephanie's POV_

I woke up for the third time this morning and realized since it was pushing noon I should probably get up this time. I stood under the shower and realized my shoulders were stiff and sore. I guess holding my dancing stance last night put more strain on them that I thought at the time.

I couldn't help but smile at the memory of dancing with Vince. I didn't need another reason to want to do this assignment but the feeling of moving in his arms would have been enough to firm up my commitment. When he dipped me slowly I never doubted his ability to hold me and bring me back up. Maybe I could use that as proof to Lester that I trusted Vince and get him to stop harping about it.

It had cooled down to eighty degrees from yesterday's ninety-one so I decided to only pull my hair back into a ponytail and not try to keep it off my neck entirely. It was still to hot to think about anything heavy so I found a light sundress that fell mid-thigh and paired it with some roman style strappy sandals.

I had a little time before dinner at my parents' house so I decided to go enjoy the free air conditioning at Haywood and work on the searches on Maggie's friends and relatives that I started yesterday.

Woody and Zip were in the control room arguing over the ideal car. I gave them a quick hello and went to my cubicle to get to work. Before my computer had booted up Cal leaned against my desk and began the conversation. "I would have thought you would have said something to me."

I looked at him for a minute trying to figure out if he was just digging for dirt or if he was genuinely hurt.

"When we said it was new, we weren't kidding," I responded honestly. "I guess I'd hoped for a chance to get my head around it first before going public, but the car thing kind of sped everything up."

He seemed to buy that, but instead of getting me a reprieve he slid back to sit on my desk and pressed, "Why him?"

"Do you mean why him instead of you or why him in general?" I wondered.

"Either," he replied, "Both."

I sat back in my chair and wondered if there was a correct way to answer this question. I finally decided to go with, "Because he asked."

"If someone else had asked first would you have gone out with them?" He pushed.

I shrugged, not able to see a good side to a conversation in hypotheticals. "I guess it would depend upon what they were offering and how they asked."

"Would you tell me if he hurt you?" Cal asked much softer.

"I don't think I'd need to. Something tells me you guys are watching us like hawks and you'd know it right away," I snapped.

He thought about that for a minute and conceded, "You're probably right." Then he added, "So it's definitely too late for someone else to tempt you with a better offer?"

I had to chuckle at his attempt to see if I'd go out with him. I didn't feel the least bit guilty in answering, "It's definitely too late for me to consider a relationship with anyone else." I mean, the one I had with Vince wasn't real and I was obviously too damaged to have anything serious with any of the guys. They deserved far better.

Fortunately, my internal dialogue stayed that way and Cal kissed my head before walking away, content with my answer. I spent the next few hours working on the searches, getting a few details about Maggie's life that I didn't know but still not coming up with the answer as to why she was in Trenton.

Getting frustrated with my lack of progress, I stood up and banged on the top of my desk. I don't know why I was so hung up on this, but my gut was screaming the connection that explained why she was here was vital to blowing this case open.

Hector came by after my loud display and said, "Chica, you okay?"

I pushed some hair away from my face that had slipped from my ponytail and replied, "I'm fine. I'm just mad because I'm not getting the answers I need."

He looked at me for a long moment in a way that made me slightly nervous that he was seeing more than he should and then he said, "Vince is in the gym. Maybe seeing him would help."

Now I was between a rock and a hard place. Damn, I had reverted back to rock analogies. While the expression technically made sense I typically thought of rocks as being smaller, and if you were truly between a hard place and a rock all you needed to do was step over the rock and go about your merry way. I always thought the expression should have said between a boulder and a hard place, but maybe that was just me.

I shook my head to clear the silly sidebar and saw Hector still watching me. "Maybe you're right," I told him placing a quick kiss on his tear drop tattoos before heading to the stairs to go to the second floor gym. I'd never done something that bold before and the look on Hector's face was priceless so I slipped away before he had a chance to yell at me for taking liberties.

I guess I now had to make an appearance in the gym, which meant our interaction was being monitored so it would need to be good. We hadn't spent the night together so this needed to be a reunion between two new lovers who had been apart seventeen hours. How much of a public display would be required to fool everyone?

When I opened the door to the gym I was relieved to only see Caesar and Erik sparring and Lester running on a treadmill. The other guys working out weren't part of the regular team I interacted with so I wasn't as worried about them.

I had to make myself walk to Vince because I knew it was expected, but my heart wanted to go to Lester because he looked like shit. If I didn't know better I would think he was desperately trying to run off a hangover.

Vince was punching a bag at the opposite side of the gym and was glistening with sweat while all his muscles seemed to be engaged in pounding the heavy leather bag. I stood there for a minute, just marveling at the grace with which he pummeled the object in front of him. It was a nice sight and I sighed briefly, feeling regret that I couldn't really greet him the way I'd like to after seeing his body on display like this. Then again, licking my tongue across his tanned salty chest was probably not appropriate in mixed company.

Finally, I forced myself to snap out of it and got close enough to put my hands on the back of the bag and lean into it. He stopped the second I touched the bag and his whole face lit up with a grin. He picked up a towel from the floor and began to mop the perspiration from his face.

Satisfied he wasn't dripping, he tossed the towel and leaned against the opposite side of the bag causing our faces to be close but the bag prevented our bodies from touching. I assumed the view from the camera would look like we were teasing each other. I felt like I needed to explain my presence so I said, "I was running a search on Maggie and hitting more dead ends than helpful leads. When I got frustrated and banged a little on my desk Hector came by and suggested you were in the gym and I might feel better if I saw you. I didn't mean to interrupt your workout but I didn't think I could say no to his suggestion either."

He smiled his sexy little grin and said, "I'm glad you came down. I was wondering what you were up to anyway."

"Apparently, I've just been killing time," I mumbled slightly disgruntled looking at the floor.

He put the knuckle of his index finger under my chin and lifted my face to look at him once more. "Every clue, no matter how small, gets us that much closer to helping those girls and ones like them."

I nodded, agreeing with him in principle but not really feeling it. "I was done here anyway," he began, apparently seeing I wasn't buying his encouragement. "Why don't you come up to my apartment with me and hang out while I shower. You can help me figure out what to wear to your parents' house and we can leave from here."

That sounded like a good idea so I stepped away from the bag and turned to walk away. I should have remembered we were being watched but when Erik called out, "Come on man, you mean you aren't even going to kiss your woman? It's going to make the rest of us think you don't have her all tied up and we might try to move in."

I glared up at him in the ring and said, "Erik, you insensitive jerk!" His expression was complete shock and priceless which is the only explanation I have for what I did next. "Vince was being a gentleman and not getting his workout sweat all over my dress since we are going out tonight. And for future reference, you need to be careful about trying to move in. I'm very happy where I am at the moment and you might find yourself being greeted by my knee instead of the smile you seem to think you deserve."

Caesar took Erik's distraction as a chance to place a blow to his stomach and while Erik doubled over from the force, I skipped out the door. I could hear the guys yelling to him about paying more attention to his surroundings.

"Is that what you meant about letting you handle the guys if they tried to make a move of their own?" He asked, pleased with how that worked out.

I nodded and was so pleased with myself I didn't react at first when Vince opened the stairwell door and started walking up the steps. We were approaching the second landing before I snapped out of my trance and said, "Is the elevator broken?"

"Come on, Bella, you can make it from here," he encouraged grabbing me by the hand and pulling me closer to him.

I decided to let it go this time but we'd have to negotiate the stairs at some point. I could agree to use them going down, but if I had to go against gravity then I wanted the elevator to help out.

He unlocked the door with a key that he had hidden somewhere in his tight gym shorts. I tried to push the though of where exactly it had been out of my mind. "I'm going to grab a shower," he informed me. "Make yourself at home."

When the bathroom door closed I looked around, unable to stop myself. He didn't have much in the way of personal effects, but there was a single picture of a slightly looking younger Vince with a guy that looked enough like him that I assumed it was his brother. They were flanked by a couple that I guessed were their parents. If that was Marco I wondered why he was considered the prized son. I mean, Vince was more handsome by far, and he carried himself with more strength and dignity than his brother. Of course, trying to figure out family dynamics was often a useless quest.

I wandered around looking at his movies and music collection. We had similar taste, which made me smile. He had an eighties rock collection that beat anything I could dream of or afford. Of course, if I spent as much money on music as I did on shoes I probably could have one just like this.

I was so distracted looking over the titles that I didn't hear the water shut off or the bathroom door open. When his voice said, "Feel free to put in some music if you want to hear something," I spun around and covered my mouth to keep the scream from slipping out. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he apologized.

That was a first. Most of the guys thought it was funny to scare me and I couldn't remember one ever saying they were sorry about it. "It's not your fault. I tend to get distracted easily and zone out."

He stood there, covered only in a towel as though togas were the new hip outfit for Army guys, and then asked, "Would you mind helping me figure out what to wear for dinner? I want to come across as respectable, but I need to try and get as much of an edge as possible to try and intimidate your Grandmother."

I couldn't help but laugh about that. "Don't bother. If you look too tough she'll take it as a challenge and refuse to back down. Let's just go for comfortable instead," I advised.

He motioned with an arm that I should go to his bedroom so I walked into his closet and began to look around. There was a lot of empty room in here. He always seemed nicely dressed to me, but apparently he wasn't a clothes horse. "Do you want to wear long pants or shorts?" I asked from the closet.

"Long, he replied before explaining, "It covers the ankle holster better."

"Ah, I forget. You guys are fashion slaves to your weapons," I teased.

He appeared in the doorway unexpectedly and replied, "Which is preferable in my book to being a slave to my shoes."

Touché.

I handed him a pair of olive Dockers and a white long sleeve dress shirt. "Do you not own any short sleeve shirts?" I asked, unable to find any.

"Only t-shirts and I'm not wearing a t-shirt to meet your father for the first time," he explained.

"You're going to burn up," I commented realizing I needed to get out of his bedroom so that he could change. My face must have turned several shade of red because he started to laugh and said, "No more so than you."

I flipped him off, more out of habit to being picked on than true offense at his statement. He must have realized that because his quiet snicker grew into a full blown laugh.

When he stepped out of the bedroom he had rolled the sleeves up to his elbows and I figured he had met the challenge pretty well of being trustworthy and dangerous looking at the same time. I could see the gun in the holster on the right side of his belt and assumed he was wearing one at his ankle since he brought it up. His left side had a holder that I thought contained a knife, most likely much sharper than my little Swiss army one. "Are you expecting much trouble at dinner?" I couldn't help but ask.

"No, why?" He seemed confused by the question.

"Because two guns and a knife seem like overkill of sorts," I explained.

His face lit up and he moved closer to me to say, "Three guns and two knives is the least amount of protection that I'd ever consider leaving home with."

I was reminded that Vince was a dangerous guy in his own right. I didn't think anyone could exude the edge of Ranger, and no one could compete with Tank for brute size. But when he wanted to, Vince could definitely lead the pack of Merry Men for fierceness.

He picked up a duffle bag and took my hand in his as we walked out of his apartment and ran into Brett in the hall. "You off for the weekend?" Brett asked us.

"Yea," Vince admitted. "I'll be offline too."

"Have fun you two," Brett called out as we walked away. Vince tried to stop to open the door of the stairs but I tightened the grip on his hand and took the extra twenty steps to get to the elevator instead.

He shook his head but didn't argue the point.

The ride to my parents' house was quiet. If anything he seemed nervous. I was used to that as most of the guys were afraid of my Grandmother above all other things. When he stopped the truck at the curb he asked, "Any last minute instructions?"

"Don't worry, I haven't lost one of you guys to Grandma Mazur yet." I couldn't help but tease and then added, "Stay close to my dad."

"It will add to the cover?" He asked, unsure of what my instruction meant.

I shook my head no before adding, "No, it will keep you safer because he and Grandma Mazur don't interact too much, and it will keep you away from my mother. She can be…" I had no idea how to describe it and finally just went with, "Harsh."

"Should I be worried about her?" He asked trying to get a picture of what he was up against.

"No, she usually reserves her claws for me," I said with a hint of resignation in my voice. I couldn't explain to anybody why I put myself through the torture of family dinners at my parents' house, but I just felt like I had to. They rarely ended well for me and I typically felt like a failure in one form or another by the time they were over, but I kept coming back.

My mother opened the door as we approached and I silently hoped Ranger had given him combat pay for this assignment. He was about to go up against an enemy unlike any he'd ever seen before. I could tell by the tight line of Mom's mouth that she wasn't pleased to see Vince beside me.

I said hello and introduced Vince as we walked past her. She was never blatantly rude, but her greeting wasn't exactly overly warm either. I took the hint when she pointed out Dad was in the den watching the game and took Vince in to introduce him.

Dad did a double take when we walked in and hit mute. It was an odd move because he rarely turned off the sound for any reason. I walked over and kissed his cheek and introduced him to Vince. My Dad looked at him suspiciously at first but stuck out his hand for a greeting and invited him to watch the game. I was glad to have him secured in the den and went off to see about my own fate for the evening in the kitchen.

As soon as the door swung open my mother started, with no apparent need to soften her voice to keep from being overheard. "Stephanie, what are you thinking bringing that man here?"

"What's wrong with Vince?" I asked confused. "You've never complained about me bringing people to dinner before."

"He's obviously one of those men you work with, but he looks…normal, almost respectable." She explained without bringing much clarity at all to the conversation.

"I would think that would make you happy. Aren't you always after me to have a normal, respectable relationship?" I wondered.

My mother crossed herself as though I'd just said something sacrilegious. "Of course I am. But those men you work with aren't family material and he looks normal enough that the neighbors might get the wrong idea and think you two are serious about each other."

"What's wrong with that?" I asked.

"What if this gets back to Joe? You have been so stubborn about him lately that I'm starting to worry he may not take you back and a rumor like you moving on might just put him over the edge so that he'll look for someone else." She finally gave me her real concern.

"I'm not going back to Joe," I said with no emotion in my voice.

"Why not Stephanie?" She asked, pretending to care what my answer was.

I thought about it for a while and then answered, "Because we make each other miserable and we'd never last. We are better as friends and if we stay together as anything more we'll end up hurting each other beyond what can be fixed." I briefly thought my honest answer was going to work this time because she didn't have an immediate answer.

When she told me to call everyone to the table for dinner I smiled thinking I might just get out of this evening in one piece for a change. I should have known it was too good to be true.

Vince sat between my dad and me, leaving Grandma Mazur to my left. My mother served the lasagna and we all dug in quickly with little conversation for the first few minutes. I was a little worried about how quiet Grandma had been but I hoped this was the universe's way of repaying me for all the awkward evenings I'd spent at this table and I was getting a free pass for once.

Half way through the meal my mother tried a new strategy. "Stephanie, I heard from Angie Morelli that Joe was worried sick over you when your car blew up the other day."

"I saw him at the scene and he didn't seem worried, he seemed mad," I clarified suddenly on edge about what Mom was trying to do.

"That's not how she described it. I think now that you've surrounded yourself with new people you've forgotten about the old friends that have seen you through the rough parts of your life," she warned.

"Joe didn't see me through any rough patches, he caused the rough patches," I countered.

"He had a nice ass though," Grandma finally chimed in. Perfect, now the Plum circus had opened two rings of the circus. "All the girls at the Clip and Curl loved to see him walk out of the salon. The way his pants hugged his backside makes you want to put extra sealant on your dentures to keep the hold when you take a bite out of it."

"Mother," my mom interrupted, "Stop making things up. Joseph does not go to the Clip and Curl."

My dad said, "Ti ho ditto che lei era pazza." _(I told you she was crazy.)_

Vince nearly choked on his lasagna, so I assumed he understood what my father had said. When he replied, "Si, che hai fatto," _(Yes, you did)_ I had to stop and look between them to be sure I wasn't in the twilight zone. My father was actually talking at the dinner table. Sure it was in Italian which no one but Vince seemed to understand, but still he was talking. I guess the third ring of the circus was now open.

Grandma pulled my attention back by saying, "Officer hot cheeks didn't come in for a haircut, he would come by to see that mob woman with the long legs and fake boobs."

"Terry Gilman?" I asked getting mad about something I probably had no right to. "He's been coming by to see Terry lately?"

"No," Grandma corrected me with no hint of her usual teasing. "He's been coming by to see her for at last the last six months. He comes in just about the time she's finished and then the two of them go off together and he brings her back to get her car about two hours later."

"You see," Mom pointed out as though there was a conclusion one could draw other than the fact Joe was sleeping with Terry while we were still together. "He sticks by his friends and you need to learn to do the same thing."

I bit my tongue and said nothing, realizing in her eyes Joe was a saint and I was a sinner who needed to repent and beg for his grace and forgiveness. The whole idea made me want to storm out.

Grandma then changed tactics and said, "Of course, seeing the new fella you brought with you makes a woman want to forget the glue and take the teeth out to see what kind of trouble she can get into."

Dad said, "Le donna e pazza," before taking a long drink from his wineglass. _(The woman is crazy.)_

"Doveri essere spaventato?" Vince asked in smooth Italian, temporarily distracting me at how wonderful it sounded coming out of his mouth. _(Should I be scared?)_

Dad mumbled, "Terrorizzato," before digging into his dinner once more. _(Terrified.)_

Mom apparently got tired of being left out of the conversation between the men, not finding the flow of their words as beautiful as I did. "Frank, would you stop blabbering and talk some sense into your daughter?"

Dad sat up marginally and said, "She sounds like she's making sense to me."

I tried to hide my smile at Dad's confidence but Mom saw it and pounced. "Stephanie, trotting the men that you work with through the house isn't the best way to get back in Joseph's good graces. You need to stop playing and remember how old you are. It's time to get serious about settling down."

"Maybe I am serious about settling down, just not with Joseph," I responded quickly.

"If you decide not to settle down with this one, can I have him?" Grandma asked a little too eagerly. "I see a few bulges on him that I can't figure out and I'd like to try patting him down like they do on those cop shows."

Vince put his hand on my knee and I held it trying to assure him I wouldn't let her anywhere near any of his interesting bulges. Of course that didn't stop her from talking. "We could have fun playing good cop / bad cop just like they used to do on Dragnet. I've even got a set of cuffs in my room upstairs," she offered, pushing her chair back from the table as though she were going to get them.

"Mother!" Mom stopped her to my relief. "This man is not a cop. He's a hired killer that works with that group of assassins that Stephanie parades around with. Just like Joseph told us, they aren't to be trusted."

I wasn't sure what made me angrier, her believing Joe's word over mine about what happened at RangeMan, or the fact that she just insulted Vince in front of him assuming she knew anything about him. I would take a lot for myself, but I wouldn't stand for her insulting one of the guys. I stood up and threw my napkin on the table. "That's enough! If you chose to take the side of Joe over me then that's your business, but I refuse to ask someone with the honor of Vince to stay in this house for a moment more with you insulting him. He is no hired killer. There is no group of assassins at RangeMan, they are all good, decent men who do the jobs that have to be done that no one else has the courage to handle."

I looked at Vince and added, "I'm sorry you had to sit through this." I put my hand out which he took in his as he stood up. "Let's go," I said when he was on his feet.

My dad stood up and said, "Spero che tu tornerai. Lo saro gestire la madre. Questa e la prima volta in un tempo lungo, che ho visto la mia bambina ha ustao per il modo di agire e ho aspettato per anni per questo." _(I hope you'll come back. I will handle her mother. This is the first time in a long time I've really seen my little girl and I've waited years for this.)_

Even in the midst of the public display of lunacy from my family, hearing Vince reply almost made my knees weak. "Che sara a lei. Faro qualsiasi cosa che lei chiede di me, ma proteggere lei e la cosa piu importante in questo momento." _(That will be up to her. I'll do anything she asks of me, but protecting her is the most important thing right now.)_

Dad walked over to me and hugged me. It was slightly awkward as I couldn't remember him doing anything like that in years but it still felt good to know he wasn't mad about the way his dinner had been interrupted by another of my fights with Mom. "I like him," Dad whispered in my ear. I had a feeling it was because he liked talking Italian and since my mom refused to learn it had been a while since he'd used the language his parents spoke so frequently.

Dad walked us to the door and Vince shook his hand before we walked out saying, "Buonanotte, sir." _(Goodnight sir.)_

"Buonanotte figlio. Stephanie lo faccia sapere che gestire la madre." _(Good night, son. Let Stephanie know I'll take care of her mother.)_ Dad replied to Vince staring hard at him, as though trying to tell him more than just the words he'd spoken.

We walked silently to the truck. My curiosity was killing me about what my Dad was saying. It was rare for him to speak at all, and even stranger still that he'd do it so intensely. When we pulled away from the curb I couldn't stand it any more and I blurted out, "Are you going to tell me what my Dad was telling you?"

Vince nodded and I let out a breath thankful he wasn't going to keep his secrets. "I'll tell you every word he said as soon as you tell me why you stood up and walked out of their house when you did."

I was confused by his question, but I wanted to know what my Dad had said so I told him the truth. "She was being rude and insulting you. I couldn't stay there if she was going to speak that way about you and the guys."

"But you let her speak just as poorly about you," he said as though that mattered.

"So?" I asked, unsure of his point.

"So you think we're worth defending and you're not?" He clarified my point.

"Yea, I think my mom will never understand me so I've given up on convincing her of the truth. But, I can't tolerate the way she treated you. It wasn't right and there is no way you should ever have to listen to that kind of trash."

"You know we've all killed people before, right? I mean, I'd love to tell you she was wrong about everything she said, but I've got blood on my hands just like the other guys do," he said as though he were nervous confessing that.

"Stop," I told him, but he kept driving. "Stop the damned truck!" I yelled louder, getting his attention this time so that he pulled over the curb and turned to face me.

"I know when you ran missions with the Army you were called upon to do some horrible things that other people couldn't do. But that is entirely different from calling you hired killers as though you shot people for the thrill and the fun of it. You guys have too much honor to ever talk about what it takes from you to do what you do and I refuse to let her belittle your sacrifices. She can talk about me however she wants to, but I'll be damned if I'll let her insult you."

Vince turned to face me and the expression on his face was something I absolutely couldn't recognize. It was warm, but it had equal parts confusion and surprise in there along with pride. The longer I looked in his eyes the more I felt a new charge to the atmosphere around us. Fortunately, he blinked giving me the chance to look away. If I didn't know any better it almost felt like he wanted to kiss me. But that was a ludicrous idea so I thanked my lucky stars that I didn't do anything to embarrass myself like lean toward him. This was just a role for him and I needed to remember that.

Finally he turned back to grip the steering wheel and said, "Thank you."

"For what?" I asked.

"I can't remember the last time someone stood up for me. I hope I can live up to your opinion of me," he explained. For the rest of the quiet ride to my place I felt warm on the inside. I may have missed dessert at my parents' house, but I felt like what I just got was a lot sweeter than anything my mother would have served.


	8. What Happens  the Lake Stays  the Lake

_The great JE deserves all the credit for the characters below._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) you too deserve credit for any clarity of thought contained in this chapter. Thank you for working your beta magic once again._

**Chapter 8 – What Happens at the Lake Stays at the Lake**

_Vince's POV_

After I cleared Stephanie's apartment she shut and locked the door. I was glad to see I didn't need to remind her about the importance of using at the least the meager security measures her apartment afforded her.

"I'm sorry about dinner," she tried to apologize. Honestly I don't know why she felt the need to. I was still riding the high of hearing her defend me in front of her family. Hell, my parents thought the same thing about my job as her mother did, so I didn't think twice about what was being said. To think that it offended Steph enough to walk out of dinner, before dessert, was probably the greatest compliment I've ever been given.

I can't believe the way I felt in the truck when she talked about it. I swear if she hadn't looked away when she did I would have leaned over and kissed her. That probably would have ruined the assignment, as it would have made her uncomfortable around me, but I can't deny the pull to do it was stronger than I ever remember feeling around a woman before.

I walked to her kitchen and said, "You can make it up to me by splitting that pint of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough in the freezer with me."

She smiled and added, "Alright, but just so you know, I have a strict rule that if you eat the last bit of ice cream in my apartment you have to replace it." That was a deal I would gladly make to see her smile like she was.

When we settled on the couch each armed with a spoon, passing the carton between us, she finally asked, "So will you tell me now what my dad was saying at the dinner table?"

I wondered how long she'd let that go. Handing the carton back to her I told her, "Basically he called your grandmother crazy and told me I should be terrified of her searching my bulges."

Steph laughed but didn't explain what she thought was so funny. As her laughter died away she pushed, "And what about when we were leaving? He seemed so serious."

"He was," I told her sincerely. "He wanted me to promise to make you come back and assured me he would take care of your mother. He said he'd been waiting years to see you act like the little girl he remembered and he didn't want to lose you now that you appeared to be coming back to him."

"That's strange," she replied as though the words made no sense to her. I was a little rusty, but I knew I hadn't messed up the translation so I didn't understand what would be strange about his words.

I decided to level with her about our conversation when she was in the kitchen too. "When you walked into the kitchen we could hear your mother jumping on your case right away. Your Dad mumbled under his breath in Italian that your mother's harping would lead him to drinking. I responded back to him that if the harping didn't do it his mother-in-law surely would."

She gave me a chance to eat a little ice cream before tearing the container from my hands and indicating I should say more. "When he understood I spoke Italian, it was like something in him broke lose and he told me about you when you were younger and how you were always his little girl. The two of you were inseparable and then one day your mother came and took you from him yelling that he would be the cause of you being an unhappy old maid so he stepped back thinking you would come back to him if you were really unhappy. He thought at the time he was doing the right thing, but recently he wondered if it was his fault you didn't seem as carefree as you used to. He wonders if he had fought your mother more if you would be happier now."

She looked completely confused so I kept talking. "When you stood up to your mother he was thrilled and wants to see you do that again because it's how he pictured you acting when he thought about you as his little girl. He's afraid you'll stop coming to see him because of your mother."

She sat back and I took her temporary distraction as my chance to grab the ice cream. "He's had twenty hears to say something to me but he never even hinted that he missed spending time with me." She sounded hurt, as though she thought her father had just handed her over without regret or a second thought.

"Did your Dad talk to Joe in Italian?" I asked her, hoping to pull her out of the sully mood that was coming over her.

"No," she looked down as though she expected the dessert to still be there. She wasted no time in snatching it away from my grip. "Joe can't speak Italian. His Dad only used it when he was mad, so for Joe I think it brought up too many bad memories to even attempt learning."

I had heard the rumors about Joe's father being a mean son of a bitch and beating his wife and kids. I could understand not wanting to take any part of that into his present life. We managed to finish off the ice cream in record time and the mood never got as heavy as it had been so the evening passed quickly. At 2300 hours she yawned and I told her we should call it a night. I debated pushing her about letting me sleep on the couch so she could get a decent night's sleep in her own bed but she cut me off before I could say the first thing.

"Don't even think about arguing about the sleeping arrangements. You will be in that bed. If the only way to get you there is for us to share it, then that's okay with me, but you are not sleeping on this couch." I had to admire her spunk.

I decided to try confusing her and replied, "Actually, I brought over some things like you suggested to leave here and I wondered where you wanted them.

Her face turned red instantly, realizing that she had been wrong about what I was going to say and she apologized before offering to help me unpack. We put my shaving kit away in her bathroom, leaving my razor and shaving cream on the edge of the sink and my other items in her medicine cabinet.

My clothes she put in her closet on a shelf to the right hand side and I couldn't help but smile when she grabbed the t-shirt from the top of the stack and took it into the bathroom with her. The last time I was here she came out in a black t-shirt big enough to be one of Tank's, but when she stepped out this time in one of my Army grey shirts I had to swallow quickly to clear my throat. She made it look like absolutely the sexiest thing I'd ever seen. I'm pretty sure a recruiter could hit their goals a lot quicker with a picture of Steph in an Army t-shirt than any of their current advertising materials.

I raised an eyebrow at her, not trusting my voice to ask why she had helped herself to my clothes. "I'd be shocked if we didn't get a visitor tomorrow and I want to be prepared no matter what time they show up."

That seemed like a good explanation to me so I went through my evening routine and had to force images of Steph's grandmother trying to enact her Dragnet fantasies with me in order to settle my body down when I stepped out to see her lying in the bed patting the pillow where she expected me to join her. The invitation was so blatant that it was hard to remember she was only inviting me to sleep next to her.

I woke from a dead sleep, unsure of what had jolted me. I looked down at Stephanie's head on my shoulder. It seemed she liked to cuddle and even though we started out on separate sides of the bed, this is how we ended up by the next morning. I didn't want to alarm her unnecessarily so I tried to listen to see if there was a reason for me to feel on edge.

A sound from her living room told me someone was in her apartment so I jostled her and said, "Someone is in your apartment." She must have understood because she woke up pretty quickly then. I grabbed the gun from the bedside stand and then picked up my little berretta from under the pillow and handed it to her. "Stay here while I go check out the living room." She nodded that she understood, but she looked worried and I hated to leave her if she was scared.

Before I could find the strength to get out of bed, the door of her room opened and I aimed my glock at the door and whatever intruder had dared to try and hurt her. As soon as I saw the head where my gun was aimed I dropped my arms and said, "Jesus, Cal! Are you trying to get yourself killed this morning?"

"Easy man," he replied with his hands up. "We just wanted to stop by and see Steph since somebody's had her busy lately. We brought breakfast."

I looked at Stephanie and said, "Do you want me to shoot him anyway?"

She pretended to consider it before saying, "Nah, if we have to call the Ambulance then the guys that arrive on the scene may want the food he brought." She pushed the covers back and climbed out of bed, still wearing my t-shirt. I was only in a pair of briefs but the covers were concealing that fact so that it looked like I was wearing nothing but a smile.

Cal turned ten shades of red as he obviously jumped to the conclusion that we'd had sex last night and he backed out of the room, shutting the door behind him. "You could have stood up to show him you were wearing clothes," she pointed out with a smile.

"Yea, but letting him jump to that conclusion was a lot more fun," I countered, glad to see she wasn't really angry. "Do they always just barge in like that?"

"Yes," she admitted without it seeming to bother her at all. "Honestly, they let us sleep a little later than usual for a Saturday." I glanced at the clock and saw it was 1000 hours and wondered how it was possible I'd slept that late. Then she added, "If you think that's something, before they leave I can guarantee you they'll check in the bathroom to see if you've moved anything in."

"How can you tell that?" I wondered, feeling like it was Pino's all over again. I knew she was probably right, but it didn't seem like the guys to stick their nose into her personal business quite that far.

She smiled and said, "Are you saying you don't believe me?" I could see that air of a challenge in her that was hoping she could prove me wrong once more.

"How would we know?" I asked, curious how she could catch them snooping.

"Leave that to me," she replied, grabbing something from the closet before happily skipping off to the bathroom. I grabbed some sweats from the closet and didn't bother with a shirt or socks. When I got to her kitchen I realized it was Cal, Junior, and Erik all waiting on her.

They each had a cup of coffee in their hands and I noticed there was only one extra cup on the counter. The jackasses had brought her a beverage and not gotten anything for me. I took the lid off and took a sip as they all complained that I was taking her drink. I smiled at them and said, "She won't mind," hoping she didn't.

When she came out of the bathroom she was still wearing my shirt, but had added a pair of shorts that were barely visible because of how long the top hung on her. She looked around and then saw my smile over the cup of coffee. "Is that mine?" she asked matching my expression.

"Yep, the guys seemed to think I wouldn't be thirsty," I said hoping she'd back me up. She hopped up on the counter top and took the cup from my hands to take a swallow before saying, "Needs more sugar." Then she handed me three packs of Dixie crystals and I dutifully poured them in, thinking the syrup this would create would be way too much for me to drink. But just to yank their chain I took a swallow and said, "That's the way you like it," before handing the cup to her to verify. She closed her eyes and sighed, telling everybody she was very happy with the taste now. The guys kept looking between us, unsure of what to say next.

Finally Erik stood up and said, "Hey Steph, can I use your bathroom?"

"Sure," she told him with a wave of her hand. Then she pulled on my shoulders and positioned me so that I was leaning on the counter with my back to her chest. She rested her head on my shoulder, as though our cuddling together was the most natural thing in the world.

It wasn't until I heard a horrible crashing sound coming from the bathroom that I realized she was hiding behind me. I twisted my head around and asked, "What in the hell was that?"

"I put marbles in the medicine cabinet so that when the door was opened they all fell out on the tile floor," she admitted giving me a clue about just how devious she could be when she set her mind to it.

Erik came out with a red face but said nothing about the commotion he had just caused. The guys had obviously gotten what they came for as they made a hasty exit.

Cal shook my hand gripping it tightly when I walked them to the door. "You be good to her or I'll hide your body so well that no one will know where to look for you."

I would have taken offense, but I knew it was said out of love for Stephanie so I assured him. "Relax man. I have no intention of hurting Stephanie." I had said it several times already but it seemed to be truer this morning.

When they left I had her show me what she'd done in the bathroom. When the door was closed on her medicine cabinet she placed my hand on top to show me the top was missing and I could literally drop things in there. She had a stocking with the foot cut off that she had filled with old marbles and carefully lowered in before pulling the nylon free and leaving the marbles. Since the medicine cabinet wasn't level when the door opened the marbles came rolling out, hitting everything and sounding an alarm proving that the guys didn't respect her privacy at all. I decided to have a little conversation on the mats with Erik about it on Monday.

"That's nothing," she admitted slightly bitterly. "The last time Bobby was here he warned me it was time to refill my prescription for the pill."

I realized then that in our attempt to protect her we had more than overstepped the bounds of good friends and crossed into control freak territory. I wasn't sure how to keep from doing it with her but I wanted to try and show her it was possible to be concerned without being controlling. Now if I could just figure out how, I'd be a happy man.

We passed the morning doing mundane things, running to the Laundromat, and fulfilling my bargain from last night of refilling her ice cream supply. I had to admit that ice cream was my favorite food and knowing she wouldn't pick on me for it, but would eat it along with me had me excited about tasting some of the flavors we picked out together.

Soon it was time to leave to make it to the lake house so we packed a day bag and headed out of town. I'd grabbed a few CD's and had her pick some music for the trip, smiling when she picked one of my favorites for the ride.

Before the disk was over, I was pulling into the secure gate, putting my thumb over the fingerprint scanner. We were allowed entrance into the first gate but had to stop 100 yards later to buzz the microphone and announce our presence. Bobby's voice came over the intercom telling us to come on down. When the steel gate lifted I pulled through and drove through the woods to the cabin where we had been invited.

Steph grabbed the bag from the back, but I took it from her hands to carry it in. She looked at me strangely, but didn't argue about it. Maybe she was going to let me treat her like a lady after all.

Lester opened the door in a pair of swim trunks and he held out his fist for me to bump it. "Glad you guys could make it," he said completely at ease. Lester played the laid back joker at the office but you could tell he was usually wound pretty tight under that persona. But at his house on the lake he was an entirely different man, completely comfortable in his own skin.

Now that was another of those strange expressions. I mean, it isn't like you could be comfortable in some one else's skin. It would make more sense to say you were comfortable in your head or heart. Honestly, your skin is just the outside packaging so why did it matter?

Just as we were stepping in he puffed up and stopped us to say, "You guys have both been here before, but you remember the rules right?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes and said, "Yes Lester, we remember the rules."

"And what are they?" His voice sounded stern but he was smiling, so the effect was sort of lost.

"Everything that happens here, stays here," she said in a bored tone of voice.

"What else?" he pushed, not satisfied that she'd covered it all.

"No pretending, no lying, no hiding," she replied a little quieter, as though that rule were much harder for her.

Lester took a step closer to her so that her face was practically touching her chest. "How did last night go?" He asked.

"It was alright," she replied trying to make light of how her mother treated her. His eyes shot to me quickly and I shook my head no that she wasn't being honest about it.

"Bullshit," he replied pushing her to open up. "If you want to get in this cabin then you're going to tell me truth about last night."

She turned to look at me but I wasn't giving anything away so she turned back and sounded slightly irritated before speaking quickly. "Fine. My mother was a complete bitch, she told me I was getting old, and needed to go crawling back to Joe while he'd still take me back. And then she started to insult Vince and you guys, so I stood up and walked out."

Lester's eyes got huge and he didn't look to me for confirmation. The fact that she was being honest was obvious. Instead, his arms went around her and he hugged her tight. "I'm sorry about last night, Beautiful."

"It's alright," she said quickly, probably hoping to pretend it didn't happen.

"No, it isn't," he corrected her. "But it's over now and we're going to have some fun tonight so you won't have to think about it."

She nodded without replying and Lester let her go, talking us through the cabin to the kitchen where Bobby was marinating some steaks. In addition to being a great medic and soldier he was one hell of a cook too so I was glad to know he was working on dinner. I'd never had anything from him that wasn't delicious. Maybe it would make up for the dysfunctional meal last night.

Bobby stopped what he was working on and held his hands up like a surgeon trying to keep from contaminating himself and walked over to Steph to place a kiss on her cheek. He rested his forehead against hers and she stood there as though this unique greeting was perfectly normal. It reminded me of two lions saying hello and rubbing their heads together.

Lester and Bobby were really private people. To a degree we all were, but they went above most of the guys, and for good reason. After the mission where I brought Lester to Bobby, I wondered about their friendship. It never seemed like anything more than what most of us guys had with a close friend or two, but when I handed Bobby those dog tags, it felt like more. A few months after that mission they invited me to spend the weekend at a cabin on a lake and I didn't have anything else to do so I came up with them.

They went through a similar routine at the door with me, telling me before I could come in I had to promise to keep the secrets of the cabin here and that they had this place so they could relax and not have pretend to be anything they didn't feel like being. I agreed, not sure what the big deal was. They should have known by then that I knew how to keep my mouth shut.

We were fishing at the dock and I was finally relaxing after a brutal few take downs that week when Bobby brought us all some beers. He handed me one and I thanked him then he handed one to Lester. But when he tried to walk away Lester grabbed his wrist and yanked him down to kiss him. I know my face showed the shock I felt at seeing those two kiss, but when they pulled back and looked at me I couldn't help but smile. It made sense and as strange as it sounded, it worked for them.

"You okay?" Les asked me, not releasing Bobby's wrist.

"Yea, a little confused, but okay." I told them honestly.

A few beers later they explained how they didn't really think of themselves as gay. In fact, they'd probably beat the shit out of anyone who tried to say they were. After their first tour as Ranger's, they'd seen a lot of shit that was hard to deal with and one night they picked up a couple of girls to unwind with. Apparently they both felt like they lost control and were too rough with the women they took home that night. Still feeling the stress of the tour and not having a good outlet, they got drunk the next night and turned to each other.

At first they both thought of it as a single event but a few months later it happened again, only they weren't drunk this time. It was a wild ride when they were first figuring out how they felt about each other, but they eventually realized they would never settle down in the traditional sense because they didn't think they could open up to a woman about all they had experienced. And without that ability to be honest, they couldn't have a relationship with anyone.

Instead they decided they were okay with having each other because they already had the trust and full disclosure. From time to time they still head out to a bar and pick up a woman, but they are open with each other about it and it's something they do as occasional entertainment, sometimes separately, sometimes together, but always with the full knowledge of the other. As time has passed they have learned to turn to each other for intimacy and comfort and are as committed to each other as most old married people I know. There isn't anything traditional about their relationship, but it's definitely one of the more powerful ones I've ever been around.

When they come to the cabin it is to spend time together without having to hold back anything. As far as I know Stephanie is the only woman to ever come here so it spoke volumes about her if they trusted her enough to open up about their unusual lifestyle, not that I was surprised. Steph seemed to not only receive people's trust easily, but she had proven herself to be worthy of it time and time again.

Bobby pulled back and placed another kiss on her head before saying, "Les has been waiting all afternoon for you to go swimming with him. I hope you've got your suit on."

She laughed and replied, "It's in the bag. Where should I change?"

"You can use your room and just leave your stuff in there in case you stay the night," he told her, leaving me wondering which room was hers. Hell, I'd been here half a dozen times and I'd never gotten a room of my own.

"How bad was it?" Bobby asked when she shut the door of a room on the first floor to change.

"Her mom was a total bitch pressuring her, but I got to know her dad pretty well and I think I'm beginning to see why it's so hard for her trust guys," I admitted having pieced together the story her dad told me with Steph's difficulty in believing he cared whether or not she was happy.

Before I could say anything else the door opened and Steph came out in a dark blue bikini. It was gorgeous against her pale skin and she spun in a cute circle when Lester whistled at her.

"Careful Steph, or you'll have him so worked up you'll be in bed between us again tonight," she laughed as though what Bobby said was normal.

Still laughing, she and Lester ran out together, gaining speed before leaping off the end of the dock into the cool water. "Sleeping between you?" I couldn't stop myself from questioning.

Bobby returned to pounding on the meat, apparently trying to beat the marinade into the steaks. He laughed and said, "Relax, man. The first time we brought her here she was a mess. She had cut Joe lose and Ranger was called away on a mission and she was feeling completely alone. Her mom had torn into her at dinner and Les noticed while working the monitors that her car hadn't moved from the end of her parent's street in over an hour. He asked me to go check on her."

His hands stopped moving while he looked at the food, as though it had the memory printed on it. "When I opened her car door she was crying, deep gut wrenching sobs. I couldn't understand a thing she was saying and I was ready to knock her out with a sedative. But I called Lester first and asked what I should do, because I knew they had a friendship already. He told me to bring her here. So I lifted her from her car and put her in mine to bring her here. Les was waiting on us when I pulled up and he pulled her out and took her to our bedroom."

"I didn't know what the hell was going on but I followed along and got in bed on her other side, opposite Les. It took about fifteen minutes for her to give up and fall sleep. I got up an hour later and Les said she started to cry almost immediately. She would stay still and calm as long as we both surrounded her but when one of us got up she was exposed enough for her raw emotions to simmer back up to the surface again. It was a long night, but we made it through and in the morning we tried to help her talk through it. Ever since then we've tried to check in on her after she's eaten at her parent's house. It was all I could do to keep him away from her last night. I don't think he slept at all, worrying that she needed us and you wouldn't know what to do."

"She stood up to her mother and in no uncertain terms told her what she thought of her insulting me. I was so impressed and honored," I told him honestly. "Then we went back to her place, ate some ice cream, and she insisted I sleep in her bed with her."

The look on Bobby's face had me assuring him quickly. "Nothing happened, only sleeping, but she did work her way onto my shoulder during the night." I wanted him to know I'd held her since he seemed to think a run in with her mother would have warranted it.

"The guys woke us this morning and Erik tried to go through her medicine cabinet looking for signs of us as a couple I guess," I told him still irritated at how the guys seemed to think that her life was somehow communal business.

"Maybe if the guys accept you in her life, they'll stop some of that shit," Bobby agreed with my unspoken thought.

"Yea, maybe no one will feel the need to remind her when it's time to refill her pill," I accused him.

He gave me a guilty smile and then flipped me off with hands dripping with brown marinade. "So what's the deal today?" I asked, curious if they had a reason for inviting us both here.

"Just hang out. We want to give her a break from having to worry about what she says or how she acts because she struggles with lying to people. This way she can relax and still get to know you to keep the cover going," he explained with a shrug.

It sounded reasonable to me so I excused myself to change into my swimsuit and let myself out to see how she was doing. When I approached I could hear Les and Steph talking in the water about last night, and I figured it was exactly what she needed. I was there for her and I figured I'd done okay since she didn't shed the first tear, but she probably did need to work through it with someone who knew what her mother was like and capable of.

I slowed down my approach so I wouldn't intrude but when I got near the end of the little pier Steph told me the water was perfect so I jumped in and swam out to the floating dock in the center of the lake. I pulled myself out of the water and just absorbed the peace that can only be found away from the city. About ten minutes later I heard someone approach and smiled when I saw that little blue bikini drawing nearer.

"You make a great fish," I complimented her.

"I like it here," she admitted before adding, "I've always loved the water. But there's something about being in a place where honesty is required and no matter what you say you can relax, knowing you won't be judged for it, that's soothing."

I had to agree with that. Then she decided to push her luck by adding, "Besides, what woman wouldn't like to be surrounded by three gorgeous men?"

When I looked at her she had a lovely blush on her cheeks, as though admitting she found me attractive had embarrassed her in some way. "For the record, even if I have to share you with two other guys, I consider it fantastic to be around you too, Bella."

"Grazie," she replied as a thank you.

Jesus, hearing Italian come out of her mouth was the most beautiful thing I'd ever heard. I'd always been partial to it and figured if I ever did get serious about a girl she would need to at least learn a little so I could speak it around our home, but hearing that single word on her lips made me want to beg her to say something else. If possible Steph had just positioned herself in my opinion as the most interesting woman I'd ever met.

With that thought my body began to react to the image of her speaking Italian to me in bed and I found it necessary to jump in the lake once more. It was cool, not cool enough to do the job of a cold shower, but it would at least hide the development in my swim trunks. Thank God Grandma Mazur wasn't here right now. I can't imagine what she would suggest doing to investigate this bulge.


	9. Learning to Sleep Together

_Thank you to JE for creating the characters below for me to take out for a spin._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) you are amazing as a beta. Thank you for your positive attitude and support even when I'm hitting you up for a fast turn around. You're the best!_

**Chapter 9 - Learning to Sleep Together**

_Stephanie's POV_

I woke up with a start and sat straight up in bed. According to the clock on my bed side it was only three o'clock so it was way too early to be this awake. I tried to lay back and relax, willing myself back to sleep, but it wasn't working. Of course the fact that my mind was going a mile a minute wasn't helping. I was worried about the assignment, about failing the girls who might be in danger because of this drug, and about the possibility that my mother was right and I was on a fast train to spinsterhood.

I got out of bed and realized the house was cool and began to imagine how nice it would be to have a warm set of arms around me. Unable to think about anything else once that crossed my mind, I opened the door to my room and tiptoed down the hall to Les and Bobby's room. They kept separate apartments at Haywood and rarely slept over, but at the lake they always shared a bed. I listened at the door to be sure I wasn't about to interrupt something. Hearing nothing, I walked in and went to Lester's side of the bed.

He always looked so young when he was sleeping. He was perfectly still, lying on his back with Bobby's dark hand on his hip. His spiked hair was feathered back after a day in the water and the tips were sporting highlights, but whether they came from the sun or a bottle I had no idea. I hated to disturb him so I just stood there staring at how peaceful they looked together. They refused to tell me about some of the horrors they had seen, saying they didn't want images like that in my mind, but when I saw them together I was always struck at how calm they were. Separate they were often on edge, but here they were completely relaxed, as though joining soothed them both.

I sat down on the edge of the bed, feeling like a little girl trying to climb into bed with her parents after a bad dream. Lester's eyes instantly shot open, reminding me how good these guys were at being aware of their surroundings even when asleep. As soon as his eyes landed on me he gave me a sleepy smile and held out his arms for me to lay across his chest for a hug.

"What's wrong?" he asked as quietly as possible to keep from disturbing Bobby.

"Can't sleep," I replied relaxing in his arms.

"Want to talk about it?" he asked without pushing. I shook my head no and he made no further attempt to get me to talk.

After a moment he said, "Do you want to sleep in here tonight?" At heart I did, I really did, but for some reason I didn't understand I said, "No, not tonight. I just needed to check in."

His chest vibrated at my word choice and he slowly released me to sit up. I kissed his head and left their room as quietly as I could. I still wasn't sleepy so I went to the kitchen and looked for a bite. Dinner was delicious and there was no reason for me to still be hungry, but I needed something. When I saw a pint of Coffee Ice Cream I grabbed a spoon intending to head out in the darkness to sit at the end of the dock to eat my snack.

When my eyes adjusted to the lack of light, I realized someone was already sitting at the end of the dock in a laid back lounge chair. My first reaction was to run back inside, but the short dark brown hair and muscular build told me it was Vince. Looking down at the ice cream in my hand I continued my walk down the planks and tapped his shoulder with a spoon, holding out the ice cream with my other hand.

His entire face lit up with a smile and he took the spoon from me then sat up a little straighter, indicating I should sit in the chair between his legs and lean against him. It was nice to be able to share my sugar addiction with one of the Merry Men. We ate in silence for a while, just listening to the sound of crickets and the occasional airplane overhead. Hey, even at the lake, this was still New Jersey.

Finally I broke the silence and asked, "Why aren't you sleeping?"

He looked at me and answered, "I was until half an hour ago when I woke up and couldn't turn off my mind, so I came out here to sit. Staying in bed when I can't sleep just makes me mad, so I didn't bother trying." Then he turned the question back on me, "Why aren't you in bed?"

"The exact same reason as you. I woke up and then my mind started spinning, so I gave up trying to sleep," I confessed, relaxing that he couldn't judge my reason since it was the same as his.

"This is really good," he said taking an extra big bite of the frozen coffee treat.

"Yea, but I'm thinking it's probably not the best choice for convincing our minds to shut down to go back to sleep," I pointed out.

We polished off the dessert in silence and when we finished he sat the spoon in the carton to weight it down and put both items on the wood under us. Then, he pulled me tighter to him and wrapped his arms around me. It was comfortable and he wasn't pushing me to talk, which I really appreciated. We were surrounded in darkness since the moon was merely a sliver in the sky above us. Being cloaked in shadows gave me a courage I wouldn't have had otherwise, and I decided to talk.

"When I was little I was my Dad's shadow. I followed him everywhere he would let me. He taught me about cars, how to play poker, and how to appreciate sports. One day my mom came outside when I was under the Buick with my Dad and she flipped out about how he was turning me into a tom boy that no man would ever want to be with. She grabbed my ankles and yanked me from under the car, scratching my back in the process. My Dad didn't stand up to her, and after that day he didn't ask me to do anything with him again. My mom focused all her attention on turning me into a lady, and my Dad just disappeared." I didn't know if he wanted to hear this, but he did start moving one of his hands on my arm which encouraged me to keep talking.

"I guess it makes it hard to believe, when he tells you that he wants me to come back and he'll take care of my mom, because in the last twenty years he hasn't stood up for me to her and it makes me suspicious that he'll suddenly start now." I wasn't a big believer in placing the blame for how our lives turn out on someone else, but at least a part of me held back from guys because of the feeling that my own father had let me down, so there wasn't much reason to assume a stranger would do any better.

"So, even from the beginning, us guys have been letting you down?" He summed up quietly.

"I don't think about it like that, honestly I don't. I just always figured I had let him down in some way, so he just pulled back instead of standing up for me. I mean he was a strong man when I was little. If I'd been worth it he could have told my mother to butt out." I explained.

"You see that story as being your fault instead of your dad's?" He asked.

I just nodded, not feeling comfortable admitting how insecure I was about it. His hand kept making trips up and down my arm, hypnotizing me into a state of total relaxation. Finally he spoke, "I think your dad has spent the last twenty years believing if you needed him you would have come to him, and missing you every day. But if he didn't tell you that, you had no way of knowing it."

I wanted to believe his words, but I had too many other examples of how I just wasn't worth the effort for guys to have a real relationship with, so convincing my heart that he was speaking the truth wasn't going to happen easily.

"I'd like to think you're right," I finally admitted.

"Even if I'm not, it still wasn't your fault. Everything about you pulls people to you. If anyone screwed up a relationship with you it was their own fault, not yours," he offered.

"You don't know me well enough to say that," I warned him.

"I think you're wrong about that," he disagreed with no heat in his voice.

"So, we'll agree to disagree," I summed up, suddenly feeling sleepy.

"For now, only because I'm feeling tired and don't think I could hold my own in an argument with you tonight," he admitted.

Strangely, even though we were both tired, neither of us made a move to get up. The next thing I knew I heard voices. "Looks like she found a way to go to sleep last night after all," Lester said quietly.

I could feel the rumble in Vince's chest as he tried to speak quietly to keep from disturbing me. "We split the ice cream and talked for a while before we both fell asleep."

Bobby laughed, "Damn, you ate my ice cream!" I should have remembered that was his. Bobby had a long standing relationship with coffee in almost any form.

"I'll replace it. Don't get your knickers in a knot," Vince replied.

Knickers? Who the hell wore knickers anyway? I thought those were the knee britches that some golfers wore, but it sounded more like underwear since the expression involved them getting knotted. Honestly, who came up with these things? And why are we still using these phrases since we don't even know how to define the words involved anymore. Then I began to picture Bobby in a pair of plaid pants that cuffed at his knee with little knee socks and the image was so funny I couldn't stop the giggle from escaping.

"What is so funny Sleeping Beauty?" Lester asked, squatting down to bring his face to my level.

"I was just picturing Bobby in a pair of knickers," I squeaked out between laughing.

Bobby pretended to take offense and before I knew what was happening, I had been wrenched from Vince's arms where I had been perfectly comfortable and Bobby was walking to the end of the dock. "Maybe you were only laughing at my expense because you were still partially asleep. I think a dip in the lake might help you wake up." And with that I found myself being thrown in the water.

It wasn't too cold, but I was only wearing some cotton sleep shorts and a white tank top. The shirt was pretty thick, but no matter how appropriate it was for sleeping, when it's wet and clinging to your slightly chilled chest, there is a problem. I made my way to the ladder at the end of the deck and climbed out, trying to hold on to some sense of dignity but failing miserably.

I pointed at Bobby but couldn't come up with a thing to say. Before my brain could produce a witty retort to throw out Lester said, "Damn, Beautiful!" His eyes were nowhere near my face, and the fact that my shirt was plastered to me wasn't lost on him.

Bobby turned to see what Lester was talking about and took on a deer in the headlights expression too. Oh hell, don't get me started about how wildlife came to hold a place in our common expressions. I mean how many deer have I come across in my drives through Trenton?

Out of curiosity I glanced at Vince, who was looking to his right with an expression of extreme concentration on the horizon. I decided to leave before things got any more embarrassing and began to walk away, calling back over my shoulder. "I'm going to shower and change, and when I'm done I expect a big stack of pancakes ready for me to dig in."

Bobby promised they would be ready and I left them silently watching me retreat to the cabin.

We hung out and laughed together until the afternoon when it was time to return to Trenton. Vince and I left first, and when we said our goodbyes at the door Vince put his hand at the small of my back. It was a strange sensation. When Joe did it I always felt like he was using it to force me to go in whatever direction he wanted me to move. When Ranger did it I felt like I was being protected and occasionally steered along. But Vince's hand was something entirely different. It was more of a touch to reassure that he was behind me, not trying to move me in any direction, just maintaining a connection as we moved together. I refused to overanalyze it, but I liked the way it felt.

We got back to my apartment and Vince performed the customary security sweep before we settled in. "So I guess we survived our first weekend away in the eyes of the general public."

Vince smiled. "They say a road trip will make or break a relationship. How did we do?"

I decided to play along and replied, "I think our pretend relationship is as solid as it can be."

His smile faded slightly, but I chose not to ask what I'd said wrong. In truth, I wasn't sure I wanted to know what he was thinking, but I knew I needed to keep my head straight. This was just an acting gig, and I didn't need to begin to rely on him for things like a good night's sleep. I still couldn't believe how easy it was to quiet down and rest outside last night just because he was holding me.

"What's the plan for this week?" He asked, bringing me back to reality.

I shrugged and replied, "We've got class on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and I'm going to try and press Maggie a little after Tuesday night's class, but other than that I don't have any ideas. I think we are just going to have to play it by ear."

"How about keeping up appearances?" He asked a little unsure. "We've spent the weekend together, so I would think we'd want to see each other outside of class twice this week."

"How about lunch tomorrow?" I offered.

He grimaced and replied, "I have a straight shift from 0700 to 0300 so I can't skip out for lunch."

"Why don't I come over to the office around three o'clock, and you can swing by my cubicle when you're done. We could come up with a plan then." I suggested.

He seemed more than agreeable to that, so we debated over dinner options and decided on Chinese food. I told him I didn't care what we ate, mainly out of curiosity for what he would order. I still had a big jar of peanut butter, so if he came back with brown rice and stir friend veggies I would survive. He promised to take care of it and let himself out to pick up our dinner from the corner restaurant I usually did take out from.

Ten minutes after he left there was a knock at the door. I assumed he had somehow used his skills as a Merry Man to pick up dinner quickly and I opened the door without double checking who was there.

I realized my mistake as soon as the word, "Cupcake," hit my ears.

"Joe," I mirrored his greeting, trying to close the door a little, but he had already begun to walk in. Seeing he had no intention of leaving, I left the door partly open in the hope that Vince would arrive soon and help me deal with this. I'd hoped after the scene at Mooner's house that Joe would have gotten the picture, but apparently I was wrong. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just checking in to see how your new bodyguard was treating you," he said with a grin.

"I don't have a bodyguard," I pointed out.

"Sure, keep telling yourself that, Cupcake," Joe replied as though he were pleased to see I was alone in the apartment.

"I noticed the big guy was there when your car blew up, but on a Sunday night he can't be bothered to be around, so you're on your own. Either he's a real jerk, or there's nothing going on between you two." Joe explained his joy at finding me alone.

"Maybe there's a third option," I said hearing the tension in my voice. "He's gone out to pick up dinner."

"So dinner is what it costs to let one of those guys in your bed?" he snapped back.

"Joe, we are not having this conversation," I said, refusing to acknowledge the fact that he basically just called me a cheap whore.

"Why don't we watch the game and relax," Joe said, trying to switch the topic once more.

"I'm not watching the game with you," I told him at a complete loss about how to get him out of my apartment.

Joe made a big show of looking around before saying, "Why not? Is there not room for me to have a seat with all your other friends hanging out here tonight?"

"Arrgh!" I screamed at him. "You can't be here because I don't want you here."

"You don't mean that, Cupcake," he replied moving closer and trying his bedroom voice on me. When he put his hands on my shoulders he said, "The boys have missed you, and from the looks of things here, you've missed them too."

When he tried to spin me around to make me move where he wanted me, I started to get pissed. "No!" I yelled, not wanting this to go any further.

Joe was behind me now and he leaned into my ear to ask, "Why not?"

"I'm not with you anymore, and I am not going to sleep with you," I pointed out loudly.

Joe started to push me again with his hand at the small of my back in that controlling way that was nothing like Vince's gentle touch. "This hard to get routine is working for you," he commented with a little more pressure behind his hand.

I tried to spin around but Joe's hands moved to clamp down on both my arms to keep me from moving. I guess it was his cop instincts kicking in because had I succeeded in turning I was planning on kneeing his boys as hard as possible.

"I'm not playing hard to get, I just don't want you," I screamed, beginning to panic a little. I truly didn't think Joe would force me into anything, but he'd never been this forceful before either. Something about him was off and I couldn't turn around to see what it was.

"Then who do you want?" He asked with his voice beginning to rise to match mine.

At that moment I heard the most wonderful sound I could remember, "I believe the answer to that question is me," Vince said in a hard voice with his face set in a stone cold expression.

I wondered why cold expressions were compared to stones. I mean, they could be hot in the summer. And I'd seen pictures where people had even fried eggs on them, so speaking of them in terms of their chill factor seemed a bit odd. Of course the heat coming off of Vince right now looked like it could easily fry an egg, so the stone thing might not be that far off the mark.

Vince put his right hand to his hip where his glock was holstered and held his left hand out to me. "Are you alright, Bella?" he asked, not taking his eyes off Joe.

I had to pull away from Joe's grip, which had tightened down even more when Vince started talking. After I got loose I put my hand in Vince's and allowed him to pull me to his side in order to put his arm around me, holding me against him.

"Unless there is some official police business you're here for, then we were about to eat dinner and watch the game, so you can leave." The intensity of Vince's voice was something I'd not heard from him before.

"I was just about to leave anyway," Joe replied, beginning to come back to his senses. "I was just checking up on Steph since it seemed like she was alone. I can see I was wrong about that."

"I think you were wrong about a good many things, Officer Morelli," Vince warned him.

"Call me," Joe said to me as he passed by. I wish I knew what had set him off because I could never remember him being so aggressive before.

When the door closed Vince moved to put both his arms around me and he held me tightly to his chest for a few seconds. Finally he asked, "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

I shook my head no. "I'm fine. You got here before he could do anything. It's so strange because Joe's never acted like that before. It's like he had something in his mind and even though I told him it wasn't right, he wasn't able to let it go." I realized my arms were around Vince tightly and I tried to loosen my hold, but it was harder to do than I thought. Joe had scared me and that was something I never would have imagined him doing.

We stood in my living room for a few minutes before Vince asked, "How about some dinner? And then we can catch some of the game too." I nodded that I was okay with that but before he let me go he added, "And, would you mind if I stayed here tonight? Something tells me we haven't seen the last of Officer Morelli."

"Joe wouldn't hurt me," I said more out of habit than conviction.

"Maybe," Vince replied unconvinced. "But it looked like the grip he had on your arms was pretty tight." Then he released me enough to lift the short sleeve on one of my arms and big angry looking red marks were already visible in a perfect hand shaped pattern.

"It's not as bad as it looks," I quickly stumbled out. "I bruise easily."

"When a man touches a lady, she shouldn't bruise at all," Vince practically growled.

He shook his head after a few minutes and then pointed to the bag of carry out in the hall. "If you can get that, I'll put some ice in a bag so we can ice your arms while we eat."

I tried to object that it wasn't necessary, but the look he gave me told me he wasn't going to let this go. "Come on, you aren't required to take care of me like this," I argued.

"Then consider it a favor you can do for me," he replied, not backing down.

"Why is it a favor to you?" I asked while pulling out take out boxes and setting them out on the coffee table.

"Because if the guys see those bruises at the office, there will be a line a mile long to take me to the mats for not watching over you," he admitted.

"That's bullshit. You can't watch over me twenty-four hours a day. And in case you all forgot, I get into trouble all the time, so a few light bruises on my shoulders is no big deal to me," I argued.

He looked at me for a minute before a cute little grin lit up his face and he said, "Sometimes I think you just like to argue with me for the fun of it."

I could literally feel the heat in my face as I turned every imaginable shade of red. He was the first person that I truly enjoyed arguing with because it was a bit of rush to see if I could get the upper hand, and it was safe because I was beginning to believe he wouldn't just fly off the handle at me.

Finally I decided to just be honest about it and I smiled, "Sometimes I do."

That got me a full fledged laugh and he brought a couple of forks over with a bag of ice. The forks were a relief, as I had no idea how to eat fried rice with chopsticks.

"Did I get anything you'd like?" He asked, uncertain.

I glanced at the table and saw egg rolls, fried rice, sesame chicken, and some kind of lo mein noodle dish. "Yup, it looks like you covered almost all of my favorites."

"And there's still ice cream in the freezer for dessert," he reminded me, effectively solving the only thing I would have pointed out that was problematic for this meal. Now we had dessert too.

I flipped the game on, refusing to give the remote control to a guy for fear I would never see it again. We passed the boxes around, not bothering to dirty up any plates, and we ate and yelled at the game passing the next couple of hours easily. I managed to keep the ice on one arm or the other for some of that time, which made Vince happy, and when I collected the empty boxes I tossed the makeshift ice pack in the trash.

He brought in the last of the trash to the kitchen and pulled up a sleeve to check my arm once more, wincing slightly at the idea of me being hurt.

"I'll be alright," I told him trying to blow it off.

"I know, but I'm going to be pissed about it for a while, so I'm apologizing upfront if I turn into a real ass the next time we run into him," Vince warned me.

I didn't think of aggressive caveman as an attractive trait for any guy, but the slightly protective vibe that Vince was putting off was damn sexy. Needing a break from that line of thought, I excused myself for a shower and got ready for bed.

I stepped out of the bathroom in the Army shirt I had stolen from Vince after he brought some clothes over. He smiled at me and patted the bed next to him. I lay down on my side, with my head fully on my pillow, but when I felt Vince laughing I turned to face him better. "What's so funny?"

He held his arm out making a place for me against his chest and said, "Why don't you come on over. It seems like anytime we sleep together we end up attached somehow, so why don't we try starting that way."

I considered disagreeing and holding fast to my side of the bed, but there was a voice in the back of my head telling me that he was right, so I decided not to fight it. Besides, I was still plenty tired from spending a few hours awake last night and if I were honest, I did seem to sleep better than ever when his arms were around me.

"Goodnight Vince," I sighed after finding a comfortable spot with my head on his chest at his shoulder and my fingers on his collarbone.

He wrapped his arm around me, settling his hand at my hip. "Buonanotte Bella," Vince replied, and I shut my eyes smiling at his name for me.

I think he was right. Despite the unexpected event with Joe, it was a good night.


	10. More Questions than Answers

_The characters below were created by JE, not me._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I can't say enough to let the world know how much your work as the beta on this story means. You make sense out of my chaos and I thank you._

**Chapter 10 – More Questions than Answers**

_Vince's POV_

"Vince, Stephanie," Maggie called out to us as we entered the dance studio for our third lesson. We'd finished off the waltz lesson on Tuesday night and had begun working on our tango. I thought Steph and I did a good job of picking it up and I was surprised at how much was involved in these dances that look so simple when you're watching them.

"Hi Maggie," Steph returned her greeting, keeping her hand firmly clasped in mine. "What do you have in store for us tonight?"

"We're going to finish up the tango and try doing it to some popular music instead of just the canned traditional soundtrack we've been learning to," Maggie explained.

That sounded fine to me. I was a fan of this dance from the moment Maggie started explaining it on Tuesday night. Admittedly oversimplified, she said the waltz was all about the man leading his partner, showcasing her beauty and providing the structure for his woman to mold herself around. It was fun and I loved having Steph in my arms going where I led, but it wasn't a dance that truly fit our personalities.

When Maggie began to introduce the tango I couldn't help but notice the interest in Stephanie's eyes. This dance was more about a conversation – a back and forth of temptation, denial, and ultimately conquest. It was a vertical discussion about sex, but it wasn't meant to mirror the act, just the foreplay and innuendo of it. Depending upon your personality, some people thought about it as dance that was a heated debate or argument with their partner that would end with the seduction of one or the other of the dancers. I was hooked and the dark blue hue of Steph's eyes told me she was too.

When we began in the last session Maggie kept the steps simple just trying to get people accustomed to a basic pattern. Tonight we were going to expand that and begin to explore the back and forth nature of the dance. From the moment Maggie started the music and began calling out moves and instructions, I was mesmerized. Holding Steph to me in a dance like a waltz was wonderful; our bodies fit and she moved so smoothly with me. But, spinning her away and then pulling her back to me and performing moves where her body moved in the opposite direction instead of in concert with mine was a new experience.

By the end of the hour and half class I found that every time I let her go to move away from me I yearned to feel the moment when our bodies would reconnect and then move together once more. It was like a battle of withdrawal and yearning repeated over and over again. When we were finished I was sweating, battling a raging hard on, and worried how I'd ever get through the night if she curled up on me again as had become our custom.

Tonight's class went well beyond a good workout and I had to agree- this dance was foreplay and I was concerned about how to act around Steph once we left the studio. Before I had a chance to worry too much I noticed Maggie had pulled Steph over to the side in front of the mirrors away from the other students who were quickly packing up and leaving. None of them seemed really into this dance and I couldn't imagine how you could be so unaffected by it with the woman you were going to be marrying soon.

When we were the only people left I walked over to the glass where they were talking and put my hand at Steph's back. I was just trying to alert her to my presence but I was pleased that she seemed to melt into me by leaning into my side when I stepped beside her.

I missed the start of their conversation so I listened quietly, not wanting to interrupt if Steph was making any progress.

"I was thinking about the two of you after Tuesday's class and I hope I didn't overstep but I talked to my brother about you," Maggie was saying tentatively.

"What about?" Steph asked completely innocent sounding, but I could feel her body tighten up slightly against mine. I rubbed my hand up and down her arm to help her relax.

"I know you said you couldn't get married until you had a little money saved up and after watching you guys on the dance floor I can't stand the thought of finances keeping two people apart who are so perfectly suited for each other." I almost believed Maggie's sincerity.

"I appreciate your concern about our finances, but I guess we aren't the only couple trying to make ends meet," Steph responded, trying to keep things light.

"Raoul mentioned that he could use some help with his business here in Trenton, and if you're interested, I think the time involved and the money it would earn would be well worth it," Maggie was gaining momentum with her pitch now.

"Does he need part-time help?" Steph asked, trying to draw out the information we needed.

"Sort of. He needs someone familiar with the area that can make some deliveries around town for him. They would be small boxes and you would have no more than one delivery maybe three or four times a week," Maggie added to her sales pitch.

"That sounds easy enough. I definitely know my way around, but if it's that's easy I can't imagine it would bring in much money," Steph was playing the part of interested but skeptical perfectly.

"Raoul is a chemist so he creates compounds that are highly sought after and very expensive. They have to be handled carefully and delivered with specific instructions and if he can find someone that is capable of making the drop-offs in a dependable way, he will pay a thousand dollars for every drop off." Maggie said. The way she described his work, it almost sounded noble.

I decided I needed to jump in and I whistled lowly before saying, "For that kind of money it almost sounds like he's making drugs."

Maggie blushed slightly, as though she were uncomfortable with the word drug. "Some of his products are pharmaceuticals. But this is a legitimate business he's running. He is very particular about how the packages are handled though so if you can't follow his directions explicitly then this probably isn't a good idea for you." Yea, I thought. It's so legitimate that he'll pay us big bucks under the table and beat the shit out of Stephanie if she delivers a box that is open.

I knew I couldn't let my real opinion show so I looked down at Steph and said, "It's up to you. This sounds too good to be true, but it would be nice to have that kind of money in our pockets before the summer is out."

Steph looked back at Maggie and asked, "Would I meet with Raoul to learn about his business and what he needs? I think to be comfortable with this I'd need to talk to him myself."

Maggie made a face and replied, "I told him I'd talk to you about it tonight and let him know. Maybe I can get him to meet you here next week after class and you three can discuss it together then. Like I said, this is his business and I have nothing to do with it. I just wanted to help you."

Steph put a hand on Maggie's and told her, "We really appreciate you thinking of us. If your brother has time to meet with us we would be very interested. Anything that could help us move forward would be a miracle."

Maggie looked at her hands where Steph's was resting on top and spoke down to the contact. "It's not often that I get to teach a couple like you two and I hope this works out for you."

I believed that she truly wanted to be helpful but knowing that she had to realize what she was getting us into made it hard to cut her much slack for her generous offer.

We chatted for a few more minutes before gathering our things and leaving. As was our custom, we stopped for some dinner on our way back to her apartment and between bites of her bacon cheeseburger Steph asked what I thought about Maggie's offer.

"I think it's coming together a lot faster than I anticipated. I wasn't aware of anyone else meeting Raoul so this is probably the breakthrough we needed to get somewhere with this case." I told her, hoping she could hear the pride in my voice for the masterful job she'd done in manipulating the situation.

"There was something about her comment at the end that made me a little uneasy; when she wouldn't look at me and she told us she hoped it worked out for us. I got the feeling she wasn't talking about the money," Steph admitted.

"I thought the fact that she wouldn't look at you then was pretty telling too. Either way, we'll tell Tank about this tomorrow and see how he wants to play it," I summed up stealing a fry from her plate, despite having a few left of my own.

She smacked my hand with a smile on her face but she didn't try to take it back so I pushed it in my mouth in one big bite and winked at her. She laughed at my over the top flirting and we got off the case and started talking about the upcoming weekend.

"Now that it seems like we're getting closer to where we need to be we can't take any chances with our cover so I think we need to plan on spending as much time together this weekend as possible," she told me.

I had no problem with that because it would give me an excuse to avoid the guys at the office. Facing the crowd in Pino's watching our every move was nothing compared to the way I could feel them watching me for any little mistake I might make in how I treated her so they could swoop in and set me straight. Honestly, I was tired of working under a microscope.

We hadn't planned on spending every night together but since the day of her car exploding we had some how managed to only miss one night. The guys noticed and it seemed like I had somebody interrupting my workout every morning to remind me how much they thought of Stephanie and how me yanking her chain would severely punished.

That was another odd phrase I never understood. What kind of chain are we talking about? A large link steel chain would grow taunt but no damage would be done, so what is the deal? I guess one of those thin beaded chains like you pull to turn on a ceiling fan would break pretty easily, but how do either of those options relate to leading someone on?

I realized chains had nothing to do with our weekend plans so I tried to get back to the subject at hand by asking, "Anything you want to do?" I wondered. I mean if we needed to spend time together, there was no rule against enjoying it.

She used her tongue to capture a stream of juice from her burger that was escaping in a trail down her smallest finger. Damn, I had just gotten myself under control from the dance class and she had to start licking herself in front of me.

Finally she gave a little moan, only worsening my condition, before shaking her head and saying, "I don't have anything that I'm set on doing, but I guess I should spend a little time at my parent's house. It's been a week and past history has taught me that my mom is worse if I go too long without dropping by."

She sounded as though she'd rather have a root canal than face her mother again. "We could stop by for lunch tomorrow. It might help if we aren't there for dinner, and an unannounced mid-day drop by might give you the upper hand." She sat back wiping her hands on the napkin that had been resting in her lap and seemed to be thinking over my idea.

"That might work," she admitted as though the idea hadn't occurred to her. I smiled at the thought of helping her strategize for a change. "Besides, if we're there at lunch there's a greater chance Grandma Mazur will be out."

And there we go; I no longer had to worry about the growing problem under the table. Just the mention of her grandmother's name was enough to undo my response to Steph's eating.

"Is there anything you want to do?" She turned the question back to me. I wondered how she would respond to something that had been bugging me.

I must have paused for a minute too long because she got that look in her eye that told me she wasn't going to give up until I told her. "There is something, but I don't know how you'll react to it."

"Look, you've been great, going along with everything for this assignment. Even if I don't like it, I'd go along with anything to thank you for doing this with me," she foolishly announced. While I appreciated the fact that she seemed to think she owed me some type of gratitude for the work done so far, I felt she had the tables reversed in a big way.

"I want to take you to Haywood, to the second floor," I told her watching her eyes change in shock at what I was suggesting.

"But the only thing there is the armory and the gun range," she said not getting the obvious.

I waited and then the realization of what I wanted hit her. "Did Ranger put you up to this?" She began to build up a head of steam.

"No, but I couldn't help but notice that you have a revolver that you dutifully carry in your purse most days, but it's not loaded, nor is it accessible. So really it's only in there to weight down your bag." I began laying out my logic.

She blushed slightly and grasped at a straw, "So you want me to watch you shoot at the range?"

I shook my head no and said, "I want to teach you how to shoot."

"I've already been taught how to shoot," she replied as though that would stop me from pushing the issue.

"Then it won't take long if you already know it all. But we're partners, and I promised to protect you. I consider this part of taking care of you because you need to be able to defend yourself should something happen during this job," I said not giving her all my reasons.

"You're not going to start turning into a life coach are you, and demanding I be all I can be and making me eat healthy?" She said around a bite of her burger.

I looked at the remnants of my own plate and replied, "That would be rather hypocritical of me wouldn't it?"

"No running," she said as though this were a business negotiation.

"Who said anything about working out? I just want to work on your comfort level with a gun," I defended before adding, "Plus the guys will believe our relationship even more if they see me pushing you to learn about your weapon and if they see you accepting my offer to work with you. Our lives are dangerous and a relationship is only possible if our partner takes the necessary steps to protect themselves if needed."

"That's funny, I didn't think relationships in this business were possible at all," she said softly with a large dose of bitterness. It didn't suit her and it was the first time I'd heard that tone from her mouth, so I couldn't let it go.

"What does that mean?" I asked and she looked up with her face fire engine red, as though she hadn't intended to speak out loud.

Her head hit the back of the booth and she shook it hard enough I was afraid her marbles would come loose. I wonder how long that expression had been around? I mean, there was never a time when human heads made noises so why people thought marbles lived in our skulls is beyond me. And from the pictures I've seen and some of the scenes I've come across in the Rangers, the human brain doesn't look like small round balls, so there was never a basis for that expression. It's a wonder we're able to communicate at all with so many weird idioms that don't hold any relevant meaning.

She jerked her head up and said, "Ranger once told me that his life didn't lend itself to relationships."

"What does that mean?" I asked totally confused.

Her forehead wrinkled in the cutest way before she tried to explain my boss. "It means, because of the danger in his life that he can't have a real relationship. He can never be open and honest about what he's doing, or what he's done. And he would never risk getting close to someone because it might put their life in danger and he isn't willing to take that chance."

I listened to every word she said and I understood the meaning of each one, but together they made no sense to me. "But what good is a life lived if you have no one to share it with?"

She smiled but her eyes didn't light up when she asked, "What are you, a fortune cookie?"

"No, it's something my Nonna used to say," I said using the Italian term for grandmother. "I can't speak for Ranger," I finally started, realizing this needed to be discussed because it clearly impacted how she looked at all of us at RangeMan. "He's seen and done stuff that the rest of us haven't. I have some enemies that I'm sure would be glad to leverage anything they could to lord over me, but I refuse to let that keep me from living my life. I have to be a little more careful. Since you are being seen with me, I am more careful about your safety too."

Steph interrupted me and pointed out, "Yes, I think he understood that, but he had built some walls around himself that he couldn't tear down, even if he wanted to. I think when he finally told me we'd never be more than we are now, it was his way of admitting that to himself and helping me to move on. I just assumed you were all like that to a certain degree."

"I can't speak for all the guys, but I certainly don't look at the world that way. I don't let everybody in; that would be foolish. But you, for example, are one of the few people that I think of as trustworthy and I know you would never betray me or try to hurt me because you have learned about me and know my weaknesses. So you I let in." I told her hoping she understood the full extent of what I was saying.

"I'm in?" She asked as though she couldn't really believe what I was saying.

I chuckled lightly. "Of course. Do you think I spend this much time talking to everybody?" I couldn't believe she didn't realize how close I actually felt to her. Usually I held back, unwilling to let a woman have any type of advantage with me. Hell, it had been years since I'd spent more than a single night with a woman. But with Steph, I couldn't keep that same kind of distance. What we had was way beyond just a normal partner relationship, but I wasn't exactly sure what it was and I didn't think now was the time to confuse things by figuring it out either.

"You can be chatty," she said with a hint of teasing in her voice. Then she dropped the humor and asked, "How did you know you could trust me?"

"Steph I know I can trust you for the same reason that I know the sun will come up in the morning. Experience has taught me that the sun can be depended on and watching you over the last three years has taught me that you are just as dependable. You'd never intentionally hurt me," I tried explaining, feeling like I wasn't doing a good job.

"I wouldn't," she assured me quietly.

"I know that," I agreed. Then I couldn't help but add, "And one day I hope you'll believe that I wouldn't intentionally hurt you either."

Her eyes jumped up and met mine. "I think I know that already, but old habits are hard to break."

"Ah," I understood what she was saying. "You know the trick to that?"

"What?" She asked, sensing I was lightening the conversation and not pushing her somewhere she wasn't ready to go yet.

"Replace them with different habits," I answered, standing up and throwing the money for our dinner on the table. "That, and lots of ice cream."

"Vince, I'm starting to think that ice cream is your solution to just about everything," she laughed taking my hand as we walked to the truck. I didn't think frozen sugar would solve everything, but it certainly helped you deal with the problems that it couldn't fix.

We went through our routine when we arrived at her apartment and were climbing into bed an hour later. I stretched out my arm and she slid into her spot on my chest where I knew she would still be in the morning.

Friday I had a late shift so after breakfast together in the break room I didn't expect to see her until Saturday morning when she'd agreed to come over to Haywood for a bite to eat and a lesson at the range before lunch with her parents. I was determined to get her comfortable with her gun. I didn't have any illusions of turning her into Annie Oakley, but I didn't want her to get hurt if a simple hour or two in the range could have prevented it.

So when I arrived at the office at 0100 Friday night/Saturday morning, I was shocked to see her sitting in her cubicle typing madly at her computer. I went to the control room and asked Binkie what was going on.

He shrugged and answered, "She came in about 2200 hours said she needed to do some work or she'd never be able to turn off her brain enough to sleep…what ever that means," he added showing how little he understood her. "She sat down then and has been working and talking to herself for the last three hours."

I thanked him for the info and when Brett told me to go see what was wrong with her and that he'd file the paperwork from our take down, I gladly accepted his offer.

I walked up to her cubicle and realized she was so focused she probably had no idea I was there. I had a bottle of coke I'd gotten before we returned for the night so I sat it rather forcefully on her desk to get her attention in the hope of not scaring her.

She spun around and looked confused when she saw me. "I thought you had a late shift."

I looked at my watch and said, "I did, it's after one in the morning. How much later did you want me to work?"

"Shit," she replied making me smile. "I didn't realize it was that late."

"What are you working on?" I asked as she accepted the coke and began to take a long sip from the bottle I had just been drinking from.

"I was thinking about Maggie and Raoul and their sudden interest in Trenton from Miami and I couldn't let go of the possibility that there was a connection that we needed to know about to help," she explained.

I pulled a chair from the cubicle beside hers and sat beside her to ask, "What did you find?"

"More questions than answers," she said sitting back and stretching her neck from side to side in a motion I'd done many time when my shoulders hurt from tension.

"Come here," I said turning her chair so that her back was to me. I began to rub her shoulders, feeling the knots and hearing a quick intake of breath when I hit a particularly tender spot.

"Relax," I whispered. "I'll keep working some of this out and you tell me what questions you came up with."

She began explaining how she found the sister of Maggie's mother had been receiving regular payments of two thousand dollars every month from an account she couldn't get any details on other than it being in Maggie's name. According to the background check she lived in a small home with no mortgage and was nearly eighty years old with a nice little nest egg making the money from Maggie rather odd.

She also found a newspaper article from the Miami Herald six months before the sudden relocation of the drug operation that spoke of the tragic death of a three year old boy in a car accident. When she pulled up the picture there were several people at the scene of the crash and one of them bore a remarkable likeness to our dance instructor. If it was Maggie she looked distraught, as though the child that had died had been her own. But the background check she ran didn't show any children or significant relationships for her.

The old Aunt was being treated for glaucoma and had weekly visits with an eye specialist on the other side of town. The doctor was young and didn't have any impressive credentials that explained why she went so far away regularly for an eye condition that didn't typically require such regular monitoring.

Steph was right; she was turning up more questions than answers. I didn't have a sixth sense for this kind of stuff the way the guys referred to Steph and her spidey sense, but even to me this seemed more than coincidental. I could usually feel a threat if it was physically present, but to piece the clues together and know where to dig showed she was clearly in her element.

She hissed as my thumb pressed into the largest knot once more. Unfortunately, I didn't take the time to edit my words before saying, "You know if I had you stretched out in bed, I could work on this better."

Cal walked by and said, "I don't even want to know what you need to work on. It's bad enough you got the girl but now you're flaunting it in our faces too." He was laughing when he said it, but I knew him well enough to know there was a hint of truth in there too.

"I'm sorry, Steph. I didn't mean anything inappropriate by that." I tried to convince her.

She laughed and began to gather up the papers and shutting down her computer. "I know that, but it's getting late and I should probably get back to my apartment."

"I can take you," I offered and then amended my thought by saying, "Or you could just come down to my apartment and stay there. It's late and I've got a shirt you can use." I had noticed since I'd been staying at her place that she was now exclusively wearing my t-shirts to sleep in anyway. I figured between the two of us we could figure out something for her to wear tomorrow too.

She yawned before she could answer so I figured she would agree. "Will it be awkward?" She asked much softer.

"Will what be awkward?" I wondered. This wasn't the first night we'd slept together. It was a little late to wonder about that now.

"The guys knowing I stayed with you overnight," she explained with a beautiful shade of rose touching her cheeks.

"Bella, they know I've been staying at your place for a while now so if they have a problem with us spending the night together I don't think which bed we sleep in is the issue." I explained, suddenly wanting her to stay in my apartment for some reason.

I would never force her to do it, but I wondered what it would be like to have her sleeping in my bed; to feel her presence in a place where I'd always been alone.

Steph stood up and spun around announcing, "Alright, you've convinced me. Take me to bed now."

Before I could react to the words I hadn't expected, Brett walked by and mumbled, "Lucky bastard." While I didn't appreciate the name calling, he had a point. Even a fictional relationship with Stephanie made me one hell of a lucky guy and I recognized that any time I got to spend with her, regardless of the reason, was a gift.


	11. Let me In

_The characters below belong to JE._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) thank you so much for your support and hard work as the beta on this story. _

**Chapter 11 – Let me In**

_Stephanie's POV_

"Is it always this quiet in here?" I asked as Vince led me into the Range.

He looked down at the empty room and shook his head. "No, I think they cleared out to give you some privacy."

"Right," I responded dryly. "Privacy, as in they're all crowded around the monitor upstairs watching to see what's going on."

Vince had the good sense to look slightly guilty, which told me I was exactly right in my guess of what was happening.

We spent half an hour working with a glock which he called an all purpose gun. I took it apart. I put it together. I loaded a cartridge and we reviewed safety procedures. Just about the time I was about to think I wouldn't have to shoot it, Vince turned me around so that I was facing a paper cut out of a man and Vince was standing right behind me.

His body was pressed against mine, and he whispered directly in my ear, "Remember, they're all crowded around that monitor watching."

I assumed that was his way of telling me that he was in my personal space in order to keep up appearances. I didn't really care, he was warm and I liked the way my body seemed to fit against his. Before I could get too distracted Vince took his right hand and ran it down my thigh. I tried very hard not to act surprised but I had no idea what this had to do with shooting.

Once he was midway between my hip and my knee he moved to the inside of my leg and pushed, indicating I should spread my legs. "I'm not interested in giving the guys this kind of show," I told him with my mouth pressed near my shoulder to keep anyone from reading my lips.

Vince chuckled and said, "Relax," while standing up again and putting his hands on my hips to steady me. Then he lifted both arms and clasped my hands together, stretching my arms out straight in front of me. He picked up the glock and positioned it in my right hand, cradled and supported with my left, and did a few more minor modifications to my stance. All the while his left hand was spread out over my midriff with his fingers stretched as wide as they could go, as though he were trying to touch as much of me as possible.

I knew I should be paying attention to what he was doing with the gun so that I could remember what to do next time, but he would shift his left hand slightly every few words so that all my focus was on his touch. Finally, he moved both hands from me to pick up the ear protection for both of us. Satisfied my hearing was safe, he resumed his position and put his hand back across my stomach. It was muffled but I could hear him tell me to just point the gun at the middle of the paper guy and shoot.

His hand was moving slowly up and down my stomach as he gave the instruction so that I was having trouble focusing on anything other than him. I knew I needed to do something other than just stand here absorbing his touch, so I tried to point the gun where I wanted it to go and I pulled the trigger four times in a row.

Vince pressed his hand against my stomach, I assumed as a signal to tell me to stop, so I relaxed. He raised his hands and took the gun from me and sat it on the counter in front of us. He took off his ear covering and indicated I should as well before pushing the button to bring the paper target forward to us. When it stopped moving Vince whistled and pointed to the center of the man where there were four holes within an inch of each other.

"Damn, Bella, you can't train that. You're a natural," he seemed so excited. "You've got to let me show the guys. They won't believe it."

I wasn't sure that was such a good idea. "But I didn't do anything, really. You had me so distracted with your hand on my stomach that I wasn't paying attention to anything else."

"Exactly," Vince said as though it were obvious he had been trying to distract me. "People get uptight when they're about to shoot, and their hands begin to shake, their heart rate increases, their eyes squint, and they begin to breathe faster. All of those things will throw your aim off. I wanted you to relax and not worry about the gun, so I tried to give you something else to think about."

"You succeeded," I said taking a step away from him to give myself a little breathing room. Suddenly the range was feeling twenty degrees warmer.

Just as I was about to have to start fanning myself the door banged open and Lester walked in. "Well," he began holding his hand out for the target, "How did our little girl do?"

I was about to complain about him calling me a little girl, but Lester's loud whistle cut me off and he said, "Damn, Beautiful, you can't train that, you're a natural. I've got to show the guys." He took off with the target before I could say anything in response. Honestly, I'd never understood the fascination these guys had with guns.

Vince was smirking and I flipped him off, only making him laugh loudly in response. "Not only did Lester agree with me, but he used exactly the same words to tell you that you did great. I expected it to take us several sessions to get to the point of you being near the same place for your shots and maybe even longer than that to get you hitting where you thought you were aiming."

We picked up the casings and returned the gun and clip to the armory before taking the stairs up to the fifth floor. It seemed a lot of the guys were up there for a Saturday morning, which told me they had all been watching. I received some encouragement and a few compliments on my way to Tank's office. We took the target in so Vince could show Tank my success, and Tank made as big a deal out of it as everyone else.

"Honestly guys, I know you want me to feel comfortable carrying a gun, but I didn't do anything worthy of all this. I hit a piece of paper while standing still. Let it go." I liked praise as much as the next girl, but all this attention was making me self-conscious.

Tank indicated we should sit down, and he shut the door before taking his chair behind the desk. "Bomber, that's a big deal, whether you want to believe it or not. And the guys are trying to be sure you understand we recognize natural talent when we see it, and you are covered with it. Nobody is blowing smoke here. We're really impressed."

With that mini-lecture out of the way we did our typical check in, including the research I had done last night, and we gave him a run down of our weekend plans as well. It felt like checking in with my dad before a weekend, only this time I was being honest about what I was going to be doing and who I was going to be doing it with.

It was nearing noon by the time we finished, so we decided to drop by my parent's house. Valerie's van was at the curb when we pulled up and I groaned. "Is this a bad sign?" Vince asked, unsure of my response to the minivan ahead of us.

Realizing it meant introducing him to the full insanity of my family, I shook my head and said, "No, it will probably help because there will be so much confusion over lunch that no one will say much to me. But, I hope when we leave you'll still talk to me."

"That bad?" He asked with a smile.

"Trust me, you'll be missing the days when all you had to put up with were Grandma Mazur's sex fantasies for you."

Now it was Vince's turn to groan but he opened his door, so I followed suit and got out.

When we got to the door Mary Alice opened it and wrapped her arms around my legs in a tight hug. "Aunt Stephanie, we're about to have lunch but Grandma won't let me have any hay. She told me I was not a horse, and I was only getting human food." She seemed genuinely upset, so I knelt down to her level and pushed her hair away from her face.

"Mary Alice, this is Vince," I told her introducing them. "Vince, this is my niece Mary Alice. She is exceptionally special because she is a beautiful horse, but today she is disguised as a human in order to eat lunch with us at the table."

Vince scrunched up his face like he was deep in thought before saying, "If I were a horse that had to pretend to be human for lunch, then I would want to go outside just before sitting down in order to run around and get all my kicking and neighing out of my system."

I heard Mary Alice's breath hitch in excitement. "Oh, I do, I do, but I'm not allowed to go out by myself and Angie won't put down her book to go with me."

Vince looked at me as though asking for permission so I nodded to him and he said, "How about I go out with you. I could use some time to run around before lunch too." I stood up and let Mary Alice lead Vince by the hand through the house straight out the back door.

I already knew Vince was a great guy, but at that moment his stock definitely rose to a new level. I decided to stop by the den and placed a kiss on my dad's cheek. He turned off the television and stood up to pull me into a hug. "Thanks for coming back pumpkin," he told me quietly.

I wasn't comfortable with the mushy stuff so I pulled back and said, "Vince is in the back yard with Mary Alice."

"Good," Dad said with a smile. "I like him a lot."

I excused myself to face my doom in the kitchen and smiled when I saw Dad going into the back yard where Vince was instead of sitting back down in front of the television.

"Hi Mom," I said in a voice as cheery as I could muster.

"Stephanie," she said as I approached, looking behind me as though she expected some to be there.

"You're alone?" She asked with a slightly satisfied grin on her face. I refused to believe she was gloating over the idea that I'd lost Vince as a boyfriend already.

"No," I popped her bubble, "Vince is in the back yard with Dad and Mary Alice."

Valerie's spun around. "Why is he with Mary Alice?"

"He's just giving her a chance to run around before lunch. Tell me when you're ready to sit down and I'll call them in," I assured her. Mom pulled down two more plates and Angie shut her book to help set the table for the extra guests. It only took Mom two minutes to make us sandwiches with the left over roast. They had her creamy horseradish sauce and slightly melted provolone cheese on them, and I knew they would be delicious.

Once the table was ready I called everyone in and we sat down to eat. Dad and Vince began to talk in Italian right away, which seemed to unnerve Mom and Valerie. Although I'm not sure if it was that they were conversing in a foreign language, or the fact that Dad was talking at all that was so surprising. I tried to act as casual as possible and bit into my sandwich, moaning at how delicious it was. I hadn't had one of Mom's hot roast beef sandwiches in a long time, and it was even better than I remembered.

Valerie took the opportunity my moan provided when Vince stopped talking to look at me and told him, "You were very kind to take Mary Alice outside, but you really don't need to do that."

"It was no trouble," he told her politely. "She just needed a chance to run around a little to let off some energy."

Valerie seemed to take offense and said, "Well, that's the trouble. Mary Alice needs to learn to control her energy like a little lady. She can't always run around, so she has to learn to be quiet and sit and read like her sister Angie."

Vince looked between the girls and finally said, "But aren't they different at heart, with different needs? I mean, Angie seemed content reading quietly, but that doesn't seem like something Mary Alice would enjoy as much on a beautiful day."

Valerie jumped in, "She doesn't enjoy it because she hasn't learned the proper way to behave, but before this summer is out, I will have her in line just like her sister."

I put my sandwich down and rubbed my temple with my right hand. Vince however, wasn't done. "That would be a shame."

"And why is that?" My mother asked with a slightly offended tone. "Why would it be wrong to want your daughter to act properly?"

"It isn't wrong exactly, but it would be a shame to crush her spirit. I thought she was wonderful just the way she was." He told her with a soft voice.

I couldn't help but notice Mary Alice who had been seated next to Vince was looking at him with the most dreamy expression on her face. Finally she tore her eyes away and looked at me to whisper, "I like him."

I couldn't help but play along and whispered back across Vince, "I do too."

My mother jumped in and asked, "What are you wearing? How can you possibly expect to be considered a prospective wife dressed that way?"

It was the first time I'd paid any attention to my clothes, but I was still wearing the outfit I'd pulled together from Vince's closet. I was in my jeans from yesterday, but on top I had one of his baby blue button up dress shirts with the sleeves rolled up to my elbows. Around my waist I had taken a pair of leg shackles and wrapped them to make a belt, drawing in the shirt and giving me a waist. I thought it was a great blending of Vince's clothes into a cute outfit. Apparently my mother didn't approve.

Vince leaned over and brushed a few curls away from my face and replied to my mother without taking his eyes off me. "I think she looks great in my shirt. There's something about seeing your clothes on the person you're with that makes them more your own."

My Dad got Vince's attention again by asking him something none of us could understand and just that quickly they were back in their own little world leaving me to face my mother and sister neither of which were looking all that pleased with me.

We made it through lunch with only a few additional snarky remarks, which was a record as far as I was concerned. My mom gave me a bag of homemade cookies on the way out the door and said, "Your father certainly seems taken with your boyfriend." There was distaste on her face when said the last word, but I refused to let her bait me and replied only, "I'm glad they get along because I think you're going to be seeing a lot more of him."

She walked away without another word and for once I didn't care. Dad hugged me tightly and my weekly required visitation was over.

When we got in the truck I leaned against the seat and shut my eyes. Before Vince could pull away from the curb I said, "Thank you for that."

He looked confused when he asked, "For what?"

"For standing up for my niece so that she knows there are people who think she's alright just the way she is." I explained.

He looked away and said, "Let's just say I understood her completely. I had an older brother who was the ideal child whereas I was thought of as the wild one, and I hated feeling like I wasn't so much being raised as I was being forced to pretend I was just like Marco, even though we couldn't have been more different."

We talked about our families as we drove back to my apartment, and even though it wasn't all that late I was feeling drained from the stress of the Plum house. "Do you still want to go out tonight?" Vince asked.

"I don't think so," I told him. "I'd rather watch a movie, but I've seen all the ones I have here too many times."

Vince volunteered to pick up a few movies, so we could decide what to watch together and I told him I would take a shower while he was out. I didn't really need another one, but I wanted to wash off the judgment and condemnation from the lunch conversation.

I offered Vince my keys but he smirked and let himself out, tumbling the locks himself from the outside. "Showoff!" I yelled in return before going to the bathroom to take a soak in the tub to let the bubbles get rid of my tension.

I hadn't been in the tub for long before I heard the door unlock and someone walk in. "I'll be out in a few minutes," I called out, not really ready to get out of the warm luxury of the lavender scented heaven of my tub.

I heard footsteps in the den and what sounded like a bag being unpacked in the kitchen, so I figured Vince was keeping busy and I didn't need to rush.

But when the door to the bathroom banged open and hit the wall, I couldn't help but scream. "Joe! What in the hell are you doing?"

"You didn't think our previous discussion was our last one did you?" He said with a strange look in his eye.

"No," I replied honestly. "I didn't want it to be our last conversation because we have always been friends and I didn't want to lose that. But I also don't want you just letting yourself in my apartment and scaring the hell out of me either!"

"You sounded like you were expecting someone, but I watched that bodyguard leave so I knew we would be alone before I made my move," Joe explained his presence while walking over to sit on the edge of the tub."

"What kind of move are you trying to make?" I asked, feeling sick in the pit of my stomach. I was naked and covered in bubbles, making any kind of escape next to impossible.

Joe reached his hand out and scooped up some bubbles, lifting them to his nose to take a smell. "Too flowery," he complained before wiping them off on the towel behind him.

"Sorry you don't approve, I'll be sure not to give you any bubble bath for Christmas," I replied sarcastically, trying to keep from flying off the handle. There was another of those strange ways to say something. Why a handle? How often did people attempt flight from something so tiny? Wouldn't it make more sense to compare a quick flash of temper to flying off a cliff or a mountainside? Honestly, it just didn't make any sense and I began to wonder if the architects of our language created these expressions on purpose just to confuse people.

Sensing my internal dialogue wasn't getting me any closer to safety I asked, "Now, why are you here?"

Joe's shoulders slumped forward and he looked away, but didn't move from his perch on the edge of the tub. He let out a long breath and said, "Are you really dating that guy?" 

"Why are you asking that?" I countered, hoping to avoid directly lying to anyone.

"Are we really over?" He clarified what he was really asking.

"Yea, Joe, we are really over. We weren't good together, and we both know it. Why the sudden need to stalk and scare me?" I wondered.

"I thought I'd be the first one to move on. I mean, you had Manoso, and that was alright because I knew he wasn't the marrying kind. He would never give you what I could, so I figured in that way I might begin to look like a more attractive option. But this guy is Italian and he speaks Italian too. Your Dad must be beside himself," Joe rambled, as though Vince's bi-lingual tendencies some how made him husband material.

I lifted my hand from the tub and put it on Joe's forearm, "Joe, Vince and I are still getting to know each other, but regardless of what happens between us, you and I will never be more than friends. And if you don't stop breaking in and scaring me, you're going to lose the friendship too."

"He's going to lose a hell of a lot more than that," Vince boomed from the doorway. My God, it was a good thing I was in a tub full of water so there would be no evidence of the effect Vince's presence was having on me. He seemed a good six inches taller than I remembered him being, and with his arms crossed over his chest his muscles were flexed and appeared to be ready to beat the crap out of Joe at a moment's notice.

He was exuding a dangerously fierce aura, and I couldn't remember a time when just the appearance of a man struck me as being as sexy as Vince did at that moment. He looked like he could dominate someone in a fight or in a bedroom, and the second option was making me aware of just how long it had been since I had any action in a bedroom. Why had I run the bath so hot? I was now in need of a cold shower to wash off the bubbles and get my hormones under control. I hadn't been this turned on since we were dancing on Thursday night, and it felt like at any moment one of us was going to begin ripping clothes off the other one. The music ending was the only thing that saved us from public indecency; I was sure of it.

Joe got up and stood before Vince to say, "I'm sorry about barging in. It won't happen again."

Vince stepped aside to let Joe pass and said, "No, it won't," in a low gravely voice. If I'd been Joe I would have pissed myself, but Joe seemed more resigned than anything else and he passed by Vince and out of the apartment with only the sound of the door closing to indicate he was really gone.

I could see the muscles on the side of Vince's jaw flexing as he tried to reign in his temper. I'd been around the guys enough to know when they did that they needed a minute to get control on their own, so I tried to be still and wait, but I was very aware of my nakedness and hoped he wouldn't need too long because my bubbles were beginning to disappear.

Finally, he dropped his arms and looked down at me. His brown eyes were darker than usual, I assumed from getting so angry, and he looked at the water briefly before saying, "I'm sorry, Bella. I should have been here to protect you."

"What are you talking about?" I spit out. "You were here to protect me."

"No, I left you vulnerable in the bathtub in an apartment that Mary Alice could break into, and your crazy ex waltzes in instead. I didn't have your back, and I'm sorry." He confessed why he was really upset. He wasn't all that made at Joe; instead he was pissed at himself. That I could fix.

"You listen to me, and you listen good," I raised my voice getting his attention. "You are not to blame for Joe's appearance. I would have suggested you leave anyway because we don't have to be attached at the hip every second of the day. Honestly, it isn't healthy for us to spend every waking moment together. Normal couples don't do that. You went out to do something nice for me, and I chose to put myself in a vulnerable position. If you think I'm going to allow you to take the blame for this, then you've got another thing coming, mister."

"You aren't going to talk me out of the responsibility that I shrugged off tonight. If I'd stuck with my partner like I was taught to do, then this wouldn't have happened." He countered foolishly.

"No, if you'd stuck with me all the time, I would have felt smothered and thrown you out sooner, refusing to let you come back in so that you wouldn't have been able to interrupt when you did," I argued in return.

Vince threw both arms in the air, and I felt like we were finally getting to the heart of the argument now. I took advantage of his movement and raised one arm to point to the bathroom door and said, "Get out."

"What?" He raised his voice to ask.

"I want you out of the bathroom so that I can get out of the tub and throw on some clothes. We obviously have some more to say to each other, and I can't do it if I have to sit still to hide behind my disappearing bubbles." I explained.

"Fine," he growled shutting the door behind him.

I jumped out and toweled off quickly before putting on the cotton shorts and the same blue shirt I had snagged at Vince's apartment. Without the belt, the shirt was way too long on me and you couldn't see my shorts at all. I pulled my hair down where I had pinned it up to keep it dry and flipped my head upside down to shake it out a little. When I stood back up I had to smile because I almost had that morning after look of a woman who had been taken care of the night before, and was finally stumbling out in her man's shirt.

I took a deep breath to focus and jerked the door open to storm out and find Vince leaning against the kitchen counter with a bottle of Coke in his hand.

I yanked the bottle away from him and took a long sip getting a raised eyebrow in return. "Tell me in the few minutes you were out here alone you realized how ridiculous you were being."

Vince shook his head and said, "No, I want you to tell me that while you were getting dressed you realized what a dangerous position you were in and that you were ready to hold me accountable for allowing it to happen."

"Why are you being so stubborn?" I yelled. "How egotistical are you that you think you can some how spin everything in the world to be your responsibility?"

"How self depreciating can you be to think that every time something wrong happens that it's either your fault or it wasn't as big a deal as it clearly was?" He countered with an equal amount of heat.

I took a step closer and pointed to his chest to say, "Joe wasn't going to hurt me; he just needed a final goodbye to what we once were."

Vince pushed away from the counter and grabbed my finger so that it was captive in his hand, unable to continue pointing at him and replied, "But you didn't know that to begin with. When I saw your face, you were scared. Don't pass this off as no big deal because it turned out alright. It could have been a bloody disaster, and you know it."

I couldn't get my hand free so I took the final step between us so that we were practically pressed together and I barked back, "Then you don't make this a bigger deal than it really was. Joe had a key to my apartment, and that's the only reason he got in so easily. You were here before anything bad could have happened, and as soon as you walked in I wasn't scared anymore."

Vince didn't reply to my last comment, and for a few seconds the silence began to thicken to an almost palpable consistency. In place of words spoken I could feel emotions flying around us; regret, anger, pleading, fear and concern. There was only a matter of inches between our faces, and as the silence dragged on the need to close the gap between us and press my lips to his began to grow.

Just before I acted on the yearning that was becoming overpowering someone banged on the door. I jumped and Vince drew me to his side with his left arm partially shielding my body with his. He had his gun in his right hand, but where he pulled it from I have no idea.

"Who is it?" Vince called from where we stood holding each other.

"It's the Avon lady, man," came Lester's familiar voice. "Open the door and let us in."

Vince holstered his gun at the back of his pants and yelled out, "Hang on. We'll be there in a minute." Then he turned to me and said, "I'm sorry," in the most tender voice I'd ever heard from a man.

"So am I," I replied touching his arm with my hand. "I didn't mean to yell at you. Joe did scare me, and I hated that I allowed myself to be in a position where I would have been powerless to fight him off. It's no one's job but my own to be sure that doesn't happen again. I'm sorry I flew off the handle and took it out on you."

Vince kissed my head as the banging began again.

"You want them to come in?" he asked, willing to turn them away if I told him to.

"You better let them in, or they'll knock the door down," I warned him with a smile.

Vince opened the door and Lester and Bobby strolled in with a couple of bags each, sporting a big smile. Lester stopped when he saw me and his grin only grew larger. "Beautiful, that is a look that you are fully working."

Bobby threw out a "Damn," of his own, but when he said it the word had at lest three syllables. I looked down and realized they couldn't see the shorts underneath, and with the wild hair and flushed cheeks from yelling, it probably looked like I'd just stumbled from the bedroom instead of a bubble bath.

I went into the kitchen and grabbed some beers, passing them around without asking what they wanted. By the time we had all sat down Vince had filled them in on the highlights of Joe's visit this time, leading me to believe they were already aware of his previous visit.

Bobby and Les sat side by side on my couch and Vince plopped down in the chair to the side. There wasn't another seat, but when I gave Vince his beverage he grabbed my wrist and pulled me down to sit in his lap. There was no reason to keep up appearances in front of Bobby and Lester, but it seemed like he really wanted me there, so I allowed him to position me across his legs.

When I settled in he leaned in to whisper against my ear, "Just let me hang onto you for a while to know you aren't upset with me and that you're alright."

I nodded that I understood, and I leaned into his chest finding the perfect spot to mold myself into that would allow him to rub my arm and put me in a trance, serenaded to the sound of their masculine voices around me. At some point I heard the television being turned on and I thought I heard them cheering for a game, but I lost the will to keep up or care.

I was comfortable and cocooned in arms that were safe and comforting. I was completely relaxed and then it hit me. I could only feel this way if the person holding me was someone I trusted. Shit, shit, shit! How did I let this happen? I had let Vince in without meaning to or trying to. He just found a way to prove himself to me and day after day of being around him had shown, like the sun, he would always be there.

The primary problem with this new revelation was that if I let him in that meant he could leave and then where would I be? As my thoughts began to jumble once more, Vince's hand began to move. I hadn't been aware that he had stopped stroking me, but the movement in his hand soothed me again and I decided to try and relax once more and see if Lester was right. Maybe it was time to let someone in. It was time to risk being hurt in order to really experience life again.


	12. Cuts Like a Knife

_Standard still applies..these characters aren't my creations and only JE deserves credit for them._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I can't believe how quickly you work through my jumbled mess of words to beta a coherent chapter. Thank you!_

**Chapter 12 – Cuts Like a Knife**

_Vince's POV_

"Is she asleep?" Bobby asked, interrupting Lester's commentary on the game.

I looked down at Stephanie in my arms, cradled against my chest with her mouth slightly open and her hand at my collarbone. That looked her nighttime position, and her breathing was so deep and even that I knew she was. "Yea," I replied not looking up from her innocent face.

"How did you do that?" Lester asked in disbelief.

"Do what?" I wondered, looking up at the guys.

"Get her to fall asleep while we were making noise and talking? She hasn't just fallen asleep like that in a long time. Normally she struggles to relax so that she doesn't get the rest she needs," he explained.

That was strange; she always slept fine with me. I shrugged my free shoulder and tried to reply casually, "I guess we've spent enough time together that she's beginning to believe I'm not going to hurt her."

Les' eyes narrowed at my words as I struggled to figure out what could possibly be wrong with what I'd said. "She's letting you in."

"I hope so," I admitted, meaning it more than I could say.

He paused for a minute, giving Bobby a chance to step up and ask, "What were you two arguing about when we showed up?"

I winced, not happy that somebody heard me raising my voice with her. But when she pointed that finger at me I was definitely getting riled up, and I knew I was louder than usual. At the time I liked it. The fire between us was hot and if they hadn't knocked when they did I don't know how much longer I could have held out without kissing her. I realized I needed to say something so I told them, "Morelli."

"What about the cop?" Lester asked, giving me his full attention now.

I looked back down at Steph and wondered if she would get angry about me telling the guys her business. I realized they probably knew her better than I did, so I spilled the beans.

Beans…why do we refer to secrets as beans? Was there ever a time when people hid things in their dried vegetables so that when they were spilled their private matters were on display. How did some of these conventions come to be? Hell, I should be happy to not be thinking about rocks, but still but the whole bean thing had always confused me.

I shook my head, knowing that line of thought wasn't helping to answer their questions. "She wanted to take a bath, so I stepped out to pick up some movies for tonight. When I came back Joe had let himself in and was sitting on the side of her tub. She was scared. I listened while I walked in to see if I could figure out what was going on. At first he seemed to be threatening her, but then it changed and it was more like he was accepting that she had cut him loose and wouldn't be letting him back in. I got rid of Joe, but I was pissed as hell that he got in while I was gone."

"You fussed at her for Joe getting in?" Bobby asked confused.

"No, man, don't be dumb. None of this was her fault. A woman has a right to take a bath without worrying about some unstable cop walking in on her," I clarified. "I was mad because I knew what she was going to do while I was gone and I went anyway. She was in a vulnerable position and I didn't stay to watch her back. I left her here alone and as a result of my carelessness she was scared and could have been hurt."

"But she wasn't," Bobby restated.

"No, but that isn't the point. I'm telling her she can trust me, and then I let her down. Her safety is the one thing that is within my control, and I dropped the ball." I winced at the ball reference. The expression made sense in terms of sports; you're thrown the game winning touchdown but you fumble the reception, so you've let down your team. My issue was that Steph's safety wasn't a game, and I didn't think using an offhanded phrase made that point.

"She does trust you," Bobby summarized off the point, gesturing to her sleeping in my arms.

"But how can I expect that to continue if I let her down on the little things?" I pushed.

"You didn't let her down," Lester said rubbing his hands over his face. "If you'd been here and roughed up Morelli she would have been furious with you. In her mind you respected her wish, which is something most guys refuse to do. She doesn't want a babysitter constantly hovering to be sure she comes to no harm. She's had that before and if you repeat that mistake of thinking only about her safety then you'll start putting restrictions on what she can do and trying to control her. Taking her control away would be breaking her trust. Going out for movies like she wanted you to is respecting her independent nature. There's a difference, and you're going to need to learn that lesson quickly."

It sounded like Lester was using the same words that Stephanie had, but when he said it I got it. I hadn't necessarily failed her, but I still felt bad that she was frightened and if I'd been here she wouldn't have been. Bobby pulled me back to the present by saying, "As strange as it sounds, Steph would rather be frightened than controlled."

I let my head fall back against the chair and took a deep breath. Some days I thought this assignment was easier than I imagined- the case seemed to be moving at break neck speed. But days like this showed me just how difficult a task I was given. Could I really do this? I was on Stephanie about letting me in, but trust wasn't something I gave out freely either. Could I give the very thing I was demanding from her?

Bobby and Lester stayed for another hour, probably thinking Stephanie would wake up, but she seemed perfectly content to keep snoozing in my arms. I tried not to get a big head about it, but she was wearing my shirt, draped across my lap, with her hand and head on my chest. I was feeling pretty good at the moment.

They both kissed her curls and then let themselves out. The second the door closed she stirred. I watched her slowly come back to the land of the living and felt my breath catch when her eyes blinked open and then a smile came across her face as she focused on me.

"Hey," she said in a sleep filled voice. "Did the boys leave?"

"Yea, we hung out for a while, but they were just stopping by to say hello, so they left five minutes ago," I told her softly, unsure why I felt the need to use such a quiet voice.

"What time is it?" She asked, still making no move to get up.

I shifted to look at my watch and said, "1900 hours." When she rolled her eyes I rephrased, "seven o'clock," which earned me another smile. "Do you still want to watch a movie?"

Consciousness was slowly returning to her, and she nodded before saying, "But I'm going to need a little dinner to go along with it."

I felt her begin to move to get up, so I helped her stand and tried to hide my disappointment at the loss of her in my lap. We fixed a dinner by pulling random things out of her pantry and making a pile in the center of her coffee table. It wasn't a meal either of our mothers would have approved of, but it worked for a night of relaxing in front of the television.

Ironically, neither of us brought up our argument earlier. We both got what we needed to say out of our systems and there was no reason to harp on it. By the time we made it through the first installment of the Lord of Rings, which she had not seen for some odd reason, it was time to call it a night.

She came out of the bathroom in my Army t-shirt and I made a mental note to bring some more over for her to sleep in. I didn't usually like people messing with my things, but for reason I liked that she did it. As was our pattern, sleep found us both quickly once she settled into her spot against me. How would I ever go back to sleeping alone when this was over?

The weekend passed quickly with us spending some time at a park on Sunday playing frisbee, and even being responsible enough to do our laundry together. It should have been awkward to see our clothes mixed in the dryer, but I liked it. While the clothes were washing, we played poker and it turns out she's quite the card shark. I think I remembered her saying her dad taught her to play, which meant I needed to let him know that his lessons were well received. We went back to Haywood after dinner, and I had her spend a little more time at the range blowing through a few clips and proving once again that she was a natural. I enjoyed it because it was job to keep her just distracted enough to not worry about hitting the target, and I was very good at distracting her.

On the last series of shots I stepped up behind her and blew across her neck, causing her to drop her support hand from the gun to swat at me. I thought it was funny, but when we pulled the target in for inspection she was still dead on in the center. I raised an eyebrow at her, thinking how amazing it was, and she stuck her tongue out at me. If the guys were watching, we had done more than enough to support the impression that we were still happy together.

After dinner, it was still early enough for me to take her back to her apartment, so I drove us over as slowly as possible, not really wanting to end the time with her but uncertain if there was a valid reason to stay the night either. I was trying to back off the assertion that it was my sole job to support and protect her after the "discussion" with her and the guys on Saturday. Since I had a shift starting at 0700 I wondered if she was expecting me to drop her off.

After the security sweep I noticed she was standing in the kitchen instead of sitting down where I could join her. I wasn't trained in reading minds or body language, so I didn't know what that meant. I looked down for a minute and realized I needed to say something before it became awkward. "Well I guess we made it through another weekend."

She smiled half heartedly and agreed. I took that as a clue and told her about my shift in the morning and hoped we could run into each other during the day tomorrow. She promised she'd be dropping by the office in the afternoon and would make it a point to find me. Having that settled, there was really no reason to hang around, so I wished her a good night and walked to the door.

"I'll lock it," she said as though it were a great burden. I laughed and then wished her a goodnight while walking out. I stood there for a minute until I heard the lock tumble and then I made my way to the parking lot.

I went as slowly as I could, like a child being called in from playing in order to eat a plate full of vegetables. I knew I had to leave, but at heart I simply didn't want to. I was so distracted dragging my feet that it shocked me when my cell phone rang. I looked at the caller ID, not really in the mood to deal with the guys tonight. But when Stephanie's number showed up I practically dropped the phone in my hurry to answer it.

"Where are you?" She asked after I said hello.

I smiled, figuring she was going to expect me to say half way to Haywood based on how much time had passed. "I'm in your parking lot," I reported honestly, looking up to her bedroom window where the curtain was suddenly pulled back.

"Is it hard for you to wake up in time to get to Haywood for your early morning shift if you sleep here?" She asked, as though she were imposing with the question.

I reversed my current direction and started walking back to the stairs of her complex while answering, "Not at all. In fact, I think I'd sleep better here, which would make waking up early that much easier."

I got to the door just in time to hear the locks tumble to grant me access once more, so I shut my phone. The door swung open and she was smiling while trying to use an angry voice with me to say, "You are going to have to learn to say goodbye to me when we talk on the phone! I hate being hung up on."

I tried to stop my laugh, not wanting to make her mad but a snicker came out anyway. Acting on reflex alone I pulled her to me in the open doorway and hugged her tightly against my chest to promise, "I'll try to remember to at least give you an arrivederci."

Before she could answer I heard voices coming up the stairs that I recognized as Cal, Lester, and maybe Hector. I kissed her hair before pulling back slightly just as Cal began to call out. "I thought maybe you guys weren't all that serious about each other since there aren't too many public displays in the office, but apparently you just save your groping for her apartment."

I loosened my grip on Steph and bumped fists with Cal, not taking offense at his comment.

"What are you guys doing here?" Stephanie asked, not making a move to put any distance between us.

Hector answered this time, "You spend all your time with him," he said in his thick accent pointing a thumb at me, "And ignore us. So we come to you."

She laughed and stepped to him to kiss the tattoos on his cheek. Les and I looked at each other, not sure how Hector would react. He may be one of the smaller guys at RangeMan, but he was completely unpredictable and we didn't want him to hurt her. We should have known better because Hector wrapped his arms around her waist and dipped her back to say, "He's not the only one who can dance."

She laughed in her musical way, and I was so grateful she called me back up so I didn't miss being with her around the guys. They came in loudly and we all squeezed into her living room with Les and Cal taking the couch, Hector in the chair to the side, and Steph between my legs leaning against my chest on the floor.

We talked for a while before I asked Stephanie if she wanted to play cards with the guys. We had regular poker games in the building, and I figured no one would expect her to be as good as she was. The guys got the competitive gleam in their eyes as Stephanie got up and grabbed the deck we had been using earlier. The trash talking began but three hands into it, it was obvious the guys were shocked that Steph not only could play well, but had one hell of a poker face too.

It was midnight when they cleared out and although she was sleepy, she looked happy, so I was glad the guys stopped by. Of course once they all left and she was cuddled up next to my side, I was also glad the guys had left.

The next day I actually managed to get through my entire workout without being harassed about my relationship with Stephanie. I guess hanging around with the guys helped as Cal was still one of the leading instigators in hitting me up for details about why she was settling for me.

Tank had two files for Brett and me to round up, one of which worked eight to five at a factory on the edge of town. We decided to head over, hoping to get him before he got into work. It took about fifteen minutes before our guy arrived on a Harley with the bitch seat occupied by a woman nearly equal in size to our skip. "Let's do this," Brett led opening his door.

We approached them as they were strapping their helmets to the bike and Brett did the talking, informing the skip that he was in violation of his bond and that we were going to have to escort him to the police station. I stepped behind the skip and cuffed his wrists behind him. He told the woman standing there with her mouth hanging open to go into work and he'd see her later.

She nodded and passed by us, appearing to be surprised that her ride to work was being carted off to jail. My first mistake was not watching to be sure she really went into the factory. My second was keeping my back to the building while focusing on immobilizing the skip instead.

Brett completed the search for weapons on our guy and as he stood up he yelled, "Knife!"

I tried to step to the side just as I felt the unmistakable pain of a metal blade slicing into the back of my arm. I spun around and lashed out knocking the woman down as my instincts took over. I wasn't one to hit a woman, but he hadn't clarified the gender of my assailant, so I may have been a little more forceful than I would have been typically. She fell backwards and hit her head on a car mirror behind her, knocking her out. Brett looked over and said, "Son of a bitch! The knife's still in there!"

I didn't need him to tell me that as the pain was setting in pretty quickly. He was looking to me wondering what I wanted to do, so I said, "Get him in the car. We'll drop him off and I'll go see Bobby." I checked the woman on the ground, and she was breathing with a small knot on the side of her head. There were a few noises coming from her which indicated she'd be waking up soon, so I was anxious to leave before it turned ugly once more.

"She's going to kill me," Brett said five minutes into our drive to the station.

"She was out cold, why are you worried about that woman coming after you?" I asked him while trying to keep the seat from pressing on the small knife still sticking out of my arm. I felt like an idiot leaving it in, but Bobby had beaten the rules into us that when we were stabbed, if the weapon stayed in the bleeding would be less and he was much more likely to be able to handle it at Haywood without having to resort to a trip to the ER.

Brett growled like I wasn't speaking English, "Not the idiot that stabbed you, Stephanie. Stephanie is going to kill me for letting you get hurt."

"Could you have stopped it?" I asked him; wanting to be sure he understood my point.

"No, I warned you as soon as I saw it," he replied.

"Then you didn't let me get hurt, you tried to prevent it. My own stupidity got me hurt. Nothing else," I assured him.

At the station Brett got the skip out with Les and Bobby standing there waiting on us. Bobby pulled my arm around to look at it, and Les helped Brett get out skip back into the system.

Bobby whistled under his breath and said, "She's not going to like this."

"Stephanie?" I asked, unsure why she would care one way or the other.

"She hates it when any of the guys get hurt, but something tells me that since it's you, she's going to have an even bigger issue with it," he explained.

I knew she would visit anybody that was injured and would do a little Stephanie style pampering. We picked on whoever was receiving it, but at heart we all wished it was us. It looked like I might be about to get a turn on the receiving end of Nurse Stephanie's care. That name brought up an image in my head of her in one of those skimpy nurse uniforms that women wore at Halloween, and I had to try and superimpose Grandma Mazur's face into the mental picture to keep myself under control.

The guys came out of the station just as Bobby announced, "I can handle this at the office, but the blade needs to stay in until then."

Back at Haywood Bobby finally got the knife out of me and disinfected the wound. She hadn't gotten it in far enough to hit anything major, but cuts into muscle like this were often tender for a while, so I wasn't happy about the healing process. It only took eight stitches to close, and Bobby put a gauze bandage over the cut and then wrapped it in a bandage to hold the gauze in place and support the muscle. "You'll need to keep it covered for a few days. Since this is behind you, you can come see me each morning, or I can tell Stephanie what to do, and she can handle it."

I was about to tell him that I'd stop by for him to take care of it as he'd always been the one to patch me up, but the unmistakable sound of Stephanie's voice cut through before I could respond, "Of course I can handle it."

Then she crossed from the door to my side in four long steps and put her hand on my arm asking what happened. I gave her the short version of my lack of awareness, and she listened without judgment. Then she turned to Bobby and asked, "Alright, what do I need to do?"

He told her the signs of infection, and she rolled her eyes reminding him that she had been on the receiving end of stitches more times than she cared to remember. Then he gave her enough bandages and wraps to keep me covered until the stitches came out in a week. "Any restrictions?" she asked taking her caregiver role very seriously.

"The pain will keep him from doing anything he shouldn't. Obviously he should limit his lifting until the stitches come out, but there's no reason to enforce any other restrictions in movement as the pain level will keep him honest," Bobby report in full medic mode.

"Guys, I'm sitting right here," I interrupted. "I took a little knife in the back of the arm. I'm not unconscious." I wasn't exactly irritated, but I didn't appreciate being spoken over as though I was two years old either.

"No, you had a major cut in the muscle on the back of your arm, and if you hadn't responded so quickly when Brett warned you about the knife then it would have gone into your back and could have done all kinds of damage there," Stephanie explained while Bobby slipped out the door of the exam room.

As soon as it closed I took a good look at Stephanie and she almost looked scared. I couldn't understand that expression, so I asked what was wrong, hoping Morelli hadn't gotten stupid again while I was getting patched up.

She shook her head and sat on the table beside me. "Brett called and apologized for you getting stabbed. All he said was that the knife was still in your arm and that Bobby was going to try and handle it here. I didn't know how bad it was, or how deep it went in, so I was worried about you."

I put my good arm around her shoulder and pulled her to lean on me. "Bella, I'm alright. You don't have to worry about me."

"You've got a hole in your arm, you're not alright. If you hadn't moved it could have been much worse," she said softly with an edge to her voice.

"But I did move, so I'm okay. This will be tender, but in the big scheme of things it's not a big deal," I tried to reframe her concern.

She took a shuddering breath and I was struck with the fact that since I moved away from home I hadn't had anyone to worry about my safety. I didn't like the idea of her being upset, but I did like the way it made me feel to think I was important enough to her to worry over.

We stayed that way for a while until Erik came in with a grin on his face. "So Nurse, do you think your patient is fit to return to work, or will he need extensive one on one therapy?"

I wanted to hit him right in his smug little smiling face. Who the hell did he think he was? I had spent my fair share of time ribbing the guys who had gotten special attention from Stephanie because of injuries, but we didn't say anything to her about it because we didn't want to upset her.

"Erik, do you have a purpose for being here?" I asked, not even trying to conceal my distaste for his presence at the moment.

"Tank sent Brett back out with Binkie to round up the other skip you guys were given and I was to tell you that you have to file the report from the one this morning," he said as though that were important enough to warrant a trip down here. Clearly he came down just to get a few remarks in on Stephanie.

Stephanie hopped down before I could hold her back and she walked right up to Erik, leaving only a few inches between them. "I think he's fit for work and I'll send him back upstairs as soon as I finish giving him the treatment he deserves. You, on the other hand, are a pain in the ass. And if you keep pushing me I'll stun you and duct tape you to your desk. Do we have an understanding?"

Erik had the good sense to look slightly nervous as he nodded and then turned around to leave.

"Sorry," she apologized as she turned back to face me. "He irritated me for some reason."

I smiled at her and hopped off the table, grabbing my shirt to get dressed and take care of the paperwork waiting on me upstairs. She snatched the shirt from me and put my injured arm in first then stretched the neck over my head and held it out for me to push my good arm through. She pulled it down and smoothed it out over my chest and stomach. Truth be told, I liked the way that felt. It was going to be a test of will to not take advantage of her just for an excuse to have her touch me.

"Are you going to be able to make it to the dance class Tuesday?" She asked concerned.

"Sure," I assured her. "Even if it were a push, I'd still go because there is a chance Raoul will be there, and we can't miss that meeting or the opportunity may not present itself again."

"I know, but I hate to think about you having to move your arm so much just to maintain a cover," she told me tenderly.

"I'm not worried about the cut itself, but I'll use my arm differently, favoring it to keep from jostling it and my shoulders will probably get tight. That's the part about annoying injuries like this that I don't like," I told her as we rode the elevator to the fifth floor. Normally I wouldn't consider taking it two floors up but Stephanie was all about compromises and she had agreed to take the stairs down if she didn't have to take them up. It was a deal I was willing to make. Of course if she had negotiated harder I would have agreed to always taking the elevator but lucky for me she wasn't that good of a negotiator yet. I wondered if that was what Pop meant when he said you knew you had found the woman for you when you started agreeing to do stuff that you never would have considered otherwise.

Did that mean I had found the woman for me? And if I had, would she ever consider letting me act on it? I shut my eyes and took a deep breath trying to clear these unproductive thoughts from my head. We had a job to do, and this kind of nonsense wasn't helping. It was just confusing the issue of what needed to be done.

"Come on Bello, I'll help you get to your desk so you can spend some time staring at your monitor like I do," Steph said pulling me from the elevator. Hearing the Italian word for handsome come from her lips got my attention. I knew she was just responding to my calling her Bella, or beautiful, but it tugged on something in my chest and I liked it.

I was struggling to keep my head in the game where it belonged, but hearing things like that was dragging my heart in, and I had no idea how to control that.


	13. Special Delivery

_I wish I could take the credit, but JE created everything with any genius to it._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) you've really outdone yourself this time. Thank you for working so hard to beta this story._

**Chapter 13 – Special Delivery**

_Stephanie's POV_

"Alright everybody, you've done a great job tonight. I'll see you on Thursday," Maggie's voice cut over the music that Vince and I were moving to. The swing was a fast paced dance, and it gave us plenty of time to hold onto each other as he lifted me and I soared through the air. It probably wasn't sexy or graceful, but it was a blast and for the first time in a long time, the fact that I was drenched in sweat and slightly out of breath was fun.

I felt bad about him having to pick me up so often with the cut on his arm but he didn't seem to notice it. I made a mental note to check it tonight to be sure he hadn't pulled anything loose and just tried to act tough as a cover up. Stupid macho men.

Vince and I were slowly packing up when Maggie came over. "You guys were great tonight. Dancing really suits you."

"Thanks," Vince said with a smile. "We're having a great time." He seemed so sincere that I was almost convinced he was enjoying being forced to dance with me.

Maggie then looked at me and her whole persona changed. She only glanced at my eyes and then looked around the studio as though afraid to connect with me again. "My brother is in my office and is very interested in meeting both of you."

I looked at Vince, and he took my hand tightly in his, putting his free hand in the pocket of his pants like he was silently fiddling with his keys as we followed her to the office.

"Raoul," Maggie said softly. "This is Stephanie and Vince, the couple I told you about."

Raoul stood up and looked at us both before his eyes settled on me. "It's nice to meet you both. My sister tells me that you are interested in my little business opportunity to pick up some extra income for a period."

"Yes," I said trying to keep my voice even despite my stomach feeling like it was in my throat.

He lifted his hand to gesture to the two guest chairs beside the desk where he was sitting. Maggie excused herself, and Vince and I both took a seat. "I'm just beginning in Trenton and have several clients who will be in need of regular deliveries. At this point I am the only person making the compounds that need to be delivered, and because of their volatile nature they can only be made in small batches, so I am too busy on the manufacturing side to get involved with distribution."

As he talked he sounded so legitimate that it was hard to remember that he was responsible, either indirectly or by his own hand, for the brutal attacks on the girls I had seen photos of several weeks ago. Finally he ended his sales pitch by asking, "So do you think this is something you would be interested in?"

I tried to act much more excited than I really was, "It sounds perfect."

Raoul asked questions about my bounty hunting and I explained my long standing friendships with the police which seemed to interest him even more. He didn't seem the least bit concerned about my accident prone nature and seemed a little too excited about my propensity for exploding cars.

The closest he came to losing his used car salesman tone was when he pressed the importance of keeping the entire activity secret. Vince and I could discuss it, but I wasn't to mention it to any coworkers or friends, no matter who asked. He tried to explain it as the products being new and not fully patented yet, and he didn't want anyone to try and rip him off, but he also acknowledged the fact that the secrecy could make someone suspicious and he was merely trying to protect me. His final sentence of, "I can only make money if the packages arrive in tact, unopened, and you are only valuable to me if you prove yourself worthy of that task," seemed more like a threat than a job description, but I tried to let it go.

Vince, however, played the skeptical boyfriend and jumped in, "You said the compounds were volatile. Does that mean Stephanie is in danger while she's delivering them?"

"No," Raoul quickly assured us. "But if the vials are damaged in any way, the compound can quickly lose its chemical balance, rendering it useless but not dangerous."

"Would she need to be out late at night?" Vince asked, as though he were resigning himself to letting me do this.

"No, we can make this easy by setting up morning deliveries. She can come by the studio and pick up her box for the day around nine o'clock and drop it off. Once I receive word from my client that it's been received in good condition, then I'll get the funds to Maggie to give to you. I believe for the next two weeks I have enough orders to keep you busy daily." Raoul kept his slimy business charm going, and we both shook his hand, although he pulled mine to his lips and placed a wet kiss on my knuckles.

I could feel his eyes on me as we stood and walked out and by the time we were pulling away in Vince's truck I felt like I'd just done a distraction and had a skip's hands all over me.

"Are you okay?" Vince asked as we turned into the parking lot of my apartment.

I nodded, just waiting for the truck to stop so that I could jump out and run to the shower. I needed to wash the slimy drug dealer cooties from me. He only touched my hand, but my whole body felt violated.

We got out and I went straight for the stairs, knowing it would be quicker than the elevator. Vince unlocked the apartment, and I didn't bother waiting for him to do a sweep before dashing into the bathroom and shutting the door behind me.

Standing under the warm water I began to worry that Ranger had made a huge mistake in asking me to do this assignment. I mean, I was okay with the flirting and setting up a cover, but working with the low lifes as though it didn't bother me was a skill I just didn't have yet. The steam was getting thick enough that I couldn't see much, so I turned off the water and began to dry off wondering if Vince had left or if he was still in the living room trying to figure out what kind of crazy person he was partnered with.

I put on the big olive t-shirt hanging on the back of the door and was relieved to see it was every bit as long as the others. It would offer me enough protection to slip into the bedroom to get some panties and shorts on.

When I opened the bathroom door a little I could hear Vince talking. There were no other voices so I assumed he was on the phone. I couldn't hear everything, but I did hear him say, "She did great…had Raoul eating out of her hand." Then he summed up the meeting by saying, "Tomorrow morning is her first pick up from the studio to the delivery address. It needs to go perfectly, and we need to get his trust so that we capture the evidence outside this conversation tonight."

Then he asked about a wire, wanting to know if they had recorded the entire conversation. I knew I wasn't wearing one, so apparently Vince was more prepared than me for the meeting tonight. I realized we had Raoul admitting he made the drugs, so that would be enough to get him arrested, but if we wanted to really get a decent conviction we needed to test the drug to insure it was the same one used in Miami and get a list of who his customers were to understand how he was trying to get this to the market.

I threw on some shorts and walked out of the bedroom just as Vince was hanging up. "Hungry?" he asked turning to reveal a take out bag from Pino's.

"How did you manage that?" I wondered, allowing the smell to draw me quickly to the kitchen.

"Lester had Ram drop it off when I called him," he explained, causing me to quickly check the time to see how long I'd been in the shower.

The sub was still hot, so I figured it hadn't been too long, and I happily ate my way through it feeling content and happy by the end. Vince finished just before me, so as we cleaned up the trash he began talking first. "Tank, Lester, and Bobby will be here at 0730 tomorrow to have a team briefing before you have to leave for your pick up at 0900. I think they're going to want you wired, with multiple tracking devices," he warned me.

I nodded, knowing he was probably right and it all fit with what I was expecting anyway. Once we'd gotten all the business over with he did the unexpected and grabbed my hand and pulled me to the couch. I was about to sit beside him, but he moved his hands to my hips and guided me down into his lap. It wasn't a hardship as I'd sat in his lap enough lately to know I'd be comfortable there, so I relaxed realizing whatever this was about must be important to him.

"Can you tell me why you freaked out at the studio?" he asked, gently rubbing my arm with his free hand.

I shut my eyes and took a deep breath, realizing it was too much for me to ask that the universe leave me alone and not let Vince notice how I'd reacted to the meeting. When I opened my eyes Vince was patiently waiting for an answer, so I decided to jump in the deep end and tell him the truth. "Raoul gave me the creeps. When we were walking out I could feel him watching me, and the way his eyes were on me made me feel dirty- like when a skip gets their hands on me too much during a distraction- and I had to wash it off in order to relax."

I was expecting him to jump into a speech about me not being the right person for the job if I couldn't handle something as simple as a skip leering at me. I was totally caught off guard when he said, "I'm sorry. I knew he was watching us too, and I didn't like it, but I wasn't sure how possessive I should be, so I didn't hold you close to me like I usually do when we leave."

I thought about it quickly before saying, "It might have helped a little, but he still would have looked and I still would have felt the need to get his cooties off of me."

His chest moved a little at my word choice. "So you're cootie free?" He asked teasingly.

"Yea, I'm good now," I said electing not to fuss at him for picking on me. Instead I leaned into him more and rested my head against his shoulder absorbing his strength. "This helps," I sighed hoping I wasn't scaring Vince.

When his arms tightened slightly and he replied, "Yea, it does." I let myself believe it didn't bother him at all to have me so close to him.

The next morning I was still fighting with my hair when there was a knock at the door, telling me I'd run out of time and this would apparently be yet another pony tail day. I was wrapping the band around my hair to keep it under control as I walked out to the smell of fresh brewed coffee and doughnuts. There were two boxes on my kitchen table, each holding at least a dozen doughnuts. Vince had a Boston Cream in his hand holding it out to me. I didn't hesitate to bite into it and express my appreciation for the creamy center while pulling the band across my hair at the back one last time.

The guys were all watching us as Vince wiped the little bit that fell to my chin with his thumb and then proceeded to lick it off. To the outside observer we must look like a real couple.

Once my hands were free I took the rest of the doughnut from him and polished it off. If we'd been alone I might have been tempted to let him continue feeding it to me, but in front of the guys it just seemed wrong.

We jumped right into the discussion of what would happen this morning. I was going to drive myself to Maggie's with Lester following at a discrete distance. I would pick up the package and get back to the car where I would read the address aloud so everyone would know where I was heading. Then I was to come up with an excuse to sit in the truck until I got a text on my phone alerting me that it was safe to proceed to the drop of location.

I knew 'safe to proceed' was code for there was a substantial RangeMan presence at whatever address I was to make the drop. The guys on site would be in charge of monitoring the package once I dropped it off. They would see to it that none of the drug made its way to the streets of Trenton, so I didn't have to worry about my role causing more women to be hurt.

"How close will Les be to the studio doors?" Vince asked as things were winding down.

"I'll keep a visual on her car, so I can follow when she leaves, but I can't get close enough to be seen from the studio or it could blow the fact that she's being followed.

Vince's fist hit the table, and Bobby asked what was wrong. Vince looked at me when he answered and said, "If Raoul is there, don't go back into the office. Keep him out front. You'll have a wire, and we'll know and I'll come up with a way to get there to check on you. You don't need to be alone with him for any reason."

When Tank asked if there was a problem, Vince answered, "No, but I didn't like the way he was looking at Steph last night, and I don't want to take a chance that he's setting his sights on her in any way." I was relived that Vince wasn't telling the guys how I'd freaked out last night just from Raoul looking at me. He was taking the unease with our mark on himself to protect me from the teasing I might get about the bad guy cooties.

Everybody agreed that Vince was the only person that could really go in without screwing up everything that we'd established, so he was going to be around the block and in place before I arrived in case he needed to show up quickly. Just knowing he was around made me relax and I shot him a smile after his plan was agreed to.

I drove over to the studio on silence, not even bothering to play the radio. If anybody needed a clue about how nervous I was, the quiet of my car should have given it away.

There were no cars in the parking lot, leaving me to assume it was too early for any classes. The door was unlocked, so I let myself in and called for Maggie. She came from the back looking tired, but smiling as soon as she saw me. She told me to wait there and she'd get the box I needed to deliver. While she was gone I looked at the pictures on the wall and smiled at the typical little girls in ballerina shoes and the nervous looking boys in their dress up clothes. Mixed in was a picture of a much younger looking Maggie holding a little boy in her arms. He looked perhaps two and was grinning up at her with obvious love in his eyes.

When she came around the corner I said, "Is this your son? He looks just like you."

She visibly paled in front of me to the point that I rushed to her side to be sure she wasn't going to pass out. "Maggie?" I asked, getting worried.

She shook her head and apologized trying to sell me a story I wasn't buying, "No, I don't have any children. He was just a child I held once that seemed happy enough that the picture seemed to fit."

"I'm sorry," I apologized hoping she would understand that just because I was letting this go didn't mean I was buying her ridiculous story about it not being her son. The resemblance was enough to convince me but her reaction was all the proof necessary. I now had something new to dig on when I finished this drop off.

She seemed to come to her senses all of a sudden and lifted a small white box, just a fraction smaller than a cake box from a bakery and said, "I believe this is what you need."

I was about to turn away when Maggie called me back, "Stephanie, can I give you some advice?"

I nodded eager to hear what she wanted to say. "My brother takes this very seriously. He has a temper, and I don't want to see you get hurt, so it's very important that you make the deliveries, don't open the boxes, and don't remember any place you've been. When you're ready to stop, I'll help you, but between now and then it's important that you play by his rules."

I could hear the fear in her voice and almost felt badly for her before remembering whatever her role was in this was, she was still playing a part in those girls being hurt.

Then she handed me an index card with her handwriting on it giving me an address not far from Haywood. I had been half expecting to end up on Stark and was somewhat relieved to know that wasn't the case. I followed the plan perfectly reading the address aloud and then looking through CDs as though trying to select some music for the ride while waiting the forty-five seconds for the guys to be in position before heading off.

My phone rang and I answered it quickly, "You're doing great, Bella," Vince said in lieu of hello.

I let out a long breath, thankful to hear from him. "Thanks," I told him realizing it didn't really cover everything I wanted to say, but not really knowing what else should be said.

I hung up when I got to the address on the card and was surprised to see it was a furniture store, with the word, "Liquidation" painted on the window.

I took a deep breath and got out of the car, suddenly nervous about carrying the package in my hands. When I entered the store I realized my instructions ended there and I had no idea how to make this drop off. A middle aged man came from the back and looked at me with a typical salesman expression, but when his eyes landed on the box he asked, "Raoul?"

"Yes, he asked me to drop this off," I told him, not sure what the proper protocol was.

His entire expression changed and he looked at me as though I were lunch before taking the box and turning it at every possible angle and then pulling a cell phone from his pocket and hitting a number on speed dial. After waiting a moment he spoke only, "Yes, it's good," before hanging up and telling me, "Your payment will be back at Maggie's."

"Have a nice day," I told him trying to keep my happy, ignorant demeanor going.

"I think this will greatly improve my night," he replied in a voice that made my breakfast want to make reappearance.

I got out as quickly as possible and drove to Haywood. Once I was parked in the garage I sat there unable to decide if I should get sick or get mad. Before I could make up my mind one way or the other the door to the car opened and Vince was there with concern written all over his face. I climbed out and put my arms around his neck not caring if this was real or not, but recognizing I needed somebody to tell me I hadn't just played a real part in putting a horrible drug into the hands of some sick men.

"You did good, Bella," Vince assured me. Then he began to whisper to me in Italian. I caught words here and there but mostly I just let his arms around me and the tenor of his voice soothe me until I was no longer in danger of losing my breakfast. He must have sensed I was calming down because he pulled back just a little at the exact moment I was ready to pull myself together.

"What now?" He asked, waiting for me to dictate my next move.

"Now, I'm going to find out when Maggie had a baby, and what happened to it. Based on her reaction to the picture I saw she has a son who is probably three or four by now and he's been taken away from her for some reason. I think I'm going to need to know what happened in order to figure out how to help her." I explained hoping Vince wouldn't argue with me about trying to help someone so intricately involved in the investigation.

I should have known better by now. He smiled and led the way to the elevator before escorting me to my cubicle to let me work in peace. How he'd learned when to push me and when to leave me to sort things out on my own was a mystery, but I appreciated it more than I could say.

Two hours later I finally had the information I needed. "Yes!" I screamed when my eyes ran over the vital piece of data to answer my questions. "Lester appeared magically beside my desk and asked, "Find something interesting?"

"Absolutely," I answered before asking, "Where's Vince?"

Les grinned before telling me, "There was a time when you would share things with me."

"I still will, but I've got to tell Vince first," I told him missing his attempt at a joke completely.

A few minutes later we were in one of the small conference rooms so that I could explain my sudden excitement. Tank, Vince, Lester, and Bobby were giving me their full attention as I walked them through what I found. "Maggie had a son named Christopher who is now three and a half. About nine months ago there was a car crash where a little boy was reported as killed and Maggie's picture was shown at the side of the newspaper picture. I think it was a cover to make it appear that her son was the one that died."

Before they asked the relevance I kept going, "Two weeks later her Aunt became a foster mother for a three and a half year old boy named Chris whose single mother had passed away. This is really surprising because she has a genetic condition that affects her eyes causing a great deal of pressure and pain. She visits a doctor way across town for glaucoma treatment, even though her condition is nothing like glaucoma and he has more of a pediatric practice."

The guys were intrigued, so I figured I'd be able to finish my story now. "Apparently from the few records I could find, Christopher, Maggie's son, and now Chris, her Aunt's foster son both have this same condition which is exceptionally rare. From looking it up online it appears the only proven way to alleviate the pain from the condition is to produce a form of temporary blindness that paralyzes the muscles of the eye and prevents any signals from traveling across the optic nerve to the brain.

"So you think Maggie is doing this to help her son in some way?" Tank asked trying to understand everything.

"Yes, I think she's being forced to do it and doesn't feel like she has a choice. But the reason I think they're here is that her Aunt spent a considerable amount of time in Trenton when she was younger and recently purchased a home not far from the studio. Based on some recent credit card transactions it looks like she's planning on moving. My guess is that Maggie came up here to set up her life under the guise of the Aunt and her son following and for whatever reason it seems that someone is controlling all of this." I said beginning to see there were still quite a few details that weren't clear, but I still felt like it was important.

"So we know why Maggie's involved, and possibly why Raoul invented this drug to begin with- to help his Aunt and nephew. It might be accidental that he discovered its use as a drug for the criminals of the world." Bobby summed up.

"Regardless of his reasons for producing it, we still have to stop it from hitting the streets." Tank reminded us.

"But when we put Raoul behind bars, what will happen to Christopher if the only way to end his suffering is to use this product?" I asked, feeling my heart break for the position Maggie must feel like she's in.

"Beautiful, our job is to get the bad guys off the street. Sometimes people chose the wrong path because it's the easy one. For all we know there is a better treatment out there that could help Christopher but because this one is available to her she's quit looking for something else." Lester tried to assure me.

We talked for a few minutes and I was reminded that tomorrow's shipment would work exactly like todays. I nodded that I understood as the guys stood up to leave.

Vince moved to be in the chair next to mine pulling me closer to where he was sitting. "You're worried about Maggie?"

I nodded, "She's in over her head because of her son. I mean, I don't have children, but if I did I think I'd do just about anything to be sure they were okay."

Vince knelt in front of me allowing his chair to move from behind him. "We have to get this drug off the streets, but if you want to spend some time researching the disease Christopher suffers from, then you might be able to offer Maggie some hope by the time our assignment is over."

I hadn't thought about doing research on the medical side. I was good at looking stuff up, so I finally felt like there was something more I could do until it was show time again tomorrow.

Seeing that I was snapping out of my funk, Vince stood up and took my hand to pull me back to the office with him. I couldn't help but smile as he led me to my cubicle and deposited me in the chair back in front of my monitor. Then he kissed my hair and said, "I've got a few more hours of work to do. How about you see what you can find out from here, and I'll swing by after my shift and we can figure out dinner together."

I agreed quickly and then decided to sweeten the deal, "Dinner's good as long as it goes with the Chubby Hubby Ben and Jerry's in the freezer." The boyish smile on Vince's face told me I'd hit a home run with that suggestion.

The next day the routine was exactly the same except that when Maggie gave me the box she didn't seem to be in the mood to talk, so I left pretty quickly. While scanning through my CDs as an act while waiting for the all clear to move to the drop off location, someone knocked on my door and I screamed from the shock of it before rolling down my window to an amused looking Raoul.

"I didn't mean to startle you," he said but the smile on his face didn't support his words at all.

"No worries, I was just about to drop this off," I told him sticking to the plan.

He looked over my lap and saw the package sitting on the seat and nodded. "Tomorrow, I may have multiple deliveries for you. Do you believe you could handle three at once?"

I nodded, unsure what this meant. As far as I knew he'd never tried rushing the shipments this way. "Very good," he said with a smile before leaving me to my work.

I pulled out of the parking lot a moment later and realized my hands were shaking. I didn't know what it was about this guy, but he scared the crap out of me. I knew Vince didn't want me alone with him, and I didn't want to be in that position either.

This drop off was at a veterinary practice. The receptionist seemed to recognize the box and reached out for it, looked it over, and then picked up the phone and called Raoul to announce that the package was there safe and sound. Once she hung up she thanked me, and I returned to my car unsure what Raoul must be telling people about the deliveries.

I went back to my apartment after this drop off feeling like I needed some time to rest. It was still early, so I cleaned my apartment decided to reward my efforts with a little nap when I was done. Then after lunch I would check in at the bond's office before dance class tonight. I laid down in my usual thinking position, not the least bit surprised at how easy it was to go to sleep.

I wasn't sure how long it had been, but I felt myself waking up slowly with someone playing in my hair. Figuring it probably wasn't a bad guy since they were being so gentle, I didn't bother to yell but sighed loudly instead. I heard a deep laugh behind me and knew Vince had let himself into the apartment. "Did I miss lunch?" I wondered aloud.

"Technically," he replied still laughing, "but I did bring you a snack to eat on the way to Maggie's."

I sat up quickly at that point realizing that meant I'd virtually slept the day away. Why I was so tired was a mystery to me. I'd been sleeping well lately, much better than normal in fact. Something about having Vince beside me helped me to relax fully. Great, now that I'd slept so long I would probably struggle to sleep any tonight.

I dressed in a hurry, putting on a pair of wide leg pants, a fitted blouse, and a pair of strappy black heels. I was just freshening up my make-up when Vince knocked on the door of the bathroom and asked if I was ready to go.

"Ready enough," I told him walking out of the bathroom and getting a first good look at him in a pair of black dress pants and a bright red button up silk shirt that wasn't tucked in and was sexy as hell. I had no idea what we were in for at tonight's class but my hormones were certainly up for something exciting.

We walked in just as Maggie was starting and took our places with the other couples. She then introduced the rumba which was our dance of the evening. "Tonight's dance is in the Latin dance group, and it is the slow dance of love. It is easy to learn with a basic pattern that we can flourish to show why this is to be a dance of courtship and adoration. If you ever wanted a way to worship your partner's body in public, then this is your dance."

Oh God, I was in trouble. The last couple of days Vince had been extra attentive and tender. He had been funny and supportive and everything I could possibly ask from a partner. Then he showed up this evening looking drop dead gorgeous. Now that was another strange expression. Why, when something was particularly good looking, did we compare it to things that are dead? Honestly, I could see something being drop dead ugly, but the opposite I'd never quite understood. Whatever combination of words meant that a man was basically able to send fire in your veins with just one look was the way Vince should be described tonight.

And now I had to move my body with his in a dance that was meant to show our bodies' love for each other. If I made it through tonight without embarrassing myself it was going to be a minor miracle. As the music began and Vince put his hands on me I realized that trying to escape without embarrassment might be asking for too much. Perhaps I should just hope that I managed to keep my clothes on.


	14. Trouble Brewing

_JE created the characters below; I'm just playing with them for my own amusement._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) thank you once again for your masterful work as the beta on this story._

**Chapter 14 - Trouble Brewing**

_Vince's POV_

I woke up and realized it was a minor miracle there was enough blood flow in my body to support conscious thought. After spending the night dancing such a beautiful dance with Stephanie I managed to keep my reactions in check using all the control I possessed. Apparently in my sleep my body had no ability to keep the distance, because what was currently pressed against Steph's leg went way beyond a morning stiffy. Instead of just laying next to me cuddled up to my side, this morning she had thrown a leg bent at the knee over my waist. She was making little noises in her sleep and her body was moving every so often making me wonder what kind of erotic dream she was having.

I suppose it's possible she was dreaming about something harmless, but the way her hip was subtly moving against me made me doubt that. I was torn between wanting to pull away and take a cold shower to keep from embarrassing myself and wanting to stay here and see just how far her subconscious was going to take this. Before I had a chance to answer either of those questions the front door of her apartment opened and then slammed shut and we both sat up wide awake.

Steph shook her head as though she was struggling to clear it and I grabbed my gun from the bed side table and shifted so that I was in front of her. I didn't like the idea of being in her bedroom like sitting ducks, but whoever had come in was quickly approaching the bedroom, so I figured there was no point in trying to cut them off. Keeping Steph shielded was much more important.

"Under my pillow," I told her cryptically and knew she understood I was telling her to grab the small berretta where I slept. Before she could respond the door to the bedroom opened and Tank stood there with a shocked expression. I could feel Steph behind me and could tell instead of hiding behind me as I intended for her to do, she was using my shoulder as a support to brace her arm holding the gun and had it trained on Tank just as I did. We must have made quite the couple, giving the appearance of being ready to fight side by side. I sat the gun back on the bed side stand with my left hand and rubbed at my chest with my right hand, feeling a strange feeling there that I couldn't define after thinking about a partner in life that would fight by my side.

Steph wasn't as distracted as I was and she spoke first, "Jesus, Tank! Is there a reason you barged in here first thing in the morning?"

Tank didn't register any emotion as he began to speak, so I knew what ever brought him here was bad news. "We need to do our briefing early this morning because a girl was brought into St. Francis last night that had been sexually assaulted after being drugged and blinded. Her vision appears to be coming back, but she wasn't able to give the police anything to work with about her assailant."

Stephanie jumped up and Tank had the good sense to let himself out, so we could get dressed before walking out where everyone else was.

I could see she was building up a head of steam, so I threw on a pair of sweats and walked over to her putting my hands on her shoulders to insure she focused on me. "Stop," I told her, sensing she was blaming herself for someone being attacked.

"No," she replied with tears building up in her eyes that she was desperately trying to blink away trying to stay strong. "No, I delivered those packages and walked away. I know you're going to say I had to do it, and maybe it's true to a degree, but it doesn't change the fact that I did it and because of that a drug was used on an innocent girl last night. I gave something to a monster and he hurt someone with it."

I tightened my grip on her shoulders trying to be sure I didn't hurt her but needing to impress my sincerity on her. "You're wrong," I began watching her eyes narrow as though she were seconds from exploding at me. "We got in the two locations where you made the drops and we switched out the compounds to harmless saline. If the people you delivered drugs to attempted to use it on someone nothing would happen."

"How do you explain Tank's news?" She demanded, with her eyes swimming once more showing an edge of desperation, pleading with me to ease her conscience that she had indirectly hurt someone.

"Raoul himself has this drug and maybe he's using it for his own enjoyment outside of the deliveries you are making for him. We both know he's a dangerous man and fully capable of this." I told her. "This is not your fault. We are doing everything we can to keep people safe. You played no part in this."

She was looking directly in my eyes as I spoke, but somehow I got the impression she was seeing further than that. I wanted to pull her against me and comfort her. I wanted to take away her doubts and her misplaced guilt that she still might have caused someone else pain. But mostly I wanted to protect her from anything that might cause her to hurt and whatever was going to happen in her living room had unpleasant written all over it.

"Vince?" she asked tentatively.

"Yea, Bella?" I asked while forcing my fingers to ease up so I could let go of her.

"Grazie," she thanked me in Italian.

"Prego," I assure her, hoping she remembered what 'you're welcome' was in Italian. Hearing her speak in the language I so loved allowed me to relax so that I could take her hand and lead us out to face the guys.

Lester was watching Stephanie like a hawk. I guessed it was because he knew her well enough to know she would try and blame herself for what happened, but while Steph was fixing a pot of coffee he walked over to me and said, "What the hell happened to Steph last night?"

I thought back through the night and knew that after dinner we went to sleep. It seemed to take her a while to settle down and relax, but once she did she slept through the night. "Nothing, why?" I wondered what he was getting at.

"She's got that look," he said as though his words explained what he was after and that whatever it was didn't seem to make him happy.

"What look?" I pushed back. Glancing at her, she was as beautiful as ever. If anything the tussled hair around her face, and the rosy nature of her face gave her an extra healthy glow.

"She's got the look of a woman who was getting something besides friendship during the night," he said with no hint of teasing in his voice.

I looked back at her and damn if it didn't look that way. I knew I needed to do some fast talking. "I didn't lay a hand on her," I said quickly. I could tell he didn't believe that so I went on, "We had a dance class and learned the Rumba, then we went to sleep and she struggled, but eventually drifted off. This morning, just before Tank scared the crap out of her, she was having some sort of dream, but I wasn't a part of that."

Les relaxed slightly and then I realized if I had admitted that she and I had been fooling around he was gearing up for a fight about it. That pissed me off for some reason. He and Bobby had been pushing me to be sure Steph opened up and trusted me. What did they think was going to happen if she did that? Did they think I wouldn't be even more attracted to her than I was now? Hell, the more I got to know her the more I wondered how the hell I could ever go back to normal life after this was finished.

Tank pulled us back to the present and we moved to the living room for a briefing. Les and Bobby were on the sofa with a space between them I assumed was for Stephanie. Tank sat in the chair beside the couch and I sat on the floor. It seemed to be where I ended up when we had company, so I didn't even think about it.

What surprised me was that Steph walked past an expectant Lester and sat beside me looking at Tank to see what he had for us.

He went over the few details that existed about last night's attack. Apparently, the only thing we knew for sure was that someone had drugged this girl at a night club. She woke up in her own car in the parking lot of the club, unable to see and in pain from the beating she took. She found her cell phone in her purse and dialed 911, but because she had no information about her attacker and a rape kit at the hospital didn't produce any physical evidence, other than the trauma she had suffered, there was really nothing that could be done about it. The good news, if you wanted to call it that, was that her vision was coming back and the doctors expected her to be released later today.

"What happened to the packages I dropped off?" Steph asked Tank directly, trying to verify what I'd told her in the bedroom was true.

"RangeMan put someone inside and intercepted the packages and replaced them with placebo drugs that would not harm anyone injected with them. This attack came from some other source than the deliveries you made; I can assure you of that myself." Tank said in an unwavering voice. There was no way Steph could doubt him and I felt her begin to relax slightly next to me.

Tank continued, "The DEA has been able to run analysis testing on the vials we took that you delivered, and they've been able to prove the compound he gave you is exactly what this victim and the ones from Miami were injected with, so we are beginning to make headway there. What they want is a distribution plan to see if he has anyone else involved in the manufacturing of this drug or any partners either in this country or outside it that would just pick up where he left off when he's arrested."

"He told me I was to make multiple deliveries today," Stephanie spoke up. "Am I to keep up the same routine as the last couple of days?"

"That's all you can do right now. We'll keep the back up the same, but something tells me Raoul is more on edge. This attack will either encourage him to think he's invincible, or it will infuriate him that he's not getting more publicity, but the cops are trying to keep this under wraps for a few days at least." He explained.

I knew it was the right course of action, but I had to admit a piece of me wished Tank had said Steph no longer needed to be involved. We went over the plan for support again, although none of the details had changed, and then the guys stood up to leave.

Les walked over to Stephanie and held a hand out to help her up. I couldn't help but notice he pulled her into his arms and began talking in her ear. I stood up and walked over to Bobby. He nodded at our partners and said, "This is exactly what he wanted for her, but he's struggling to think that he's no longer the most important man in her life."

That confused me, so I replied, "I don't know that I'd be so quick to assume he doesn't still hold that place." Seeing how easily she rested against Lester caused some feeling to bubble up in me that I couldn't place. All I know is that I had to remind myself that going over there and yanking her from his embrace to pull her into my own arms was probably not the smartest move I could make at the moment.

Eventually everyone left and it was just Stephanie and me once more. She was quiet, so I followed her lead and poured myself a cup of coffee. Finally she broke the silence and asked, "How do you say, 'I miss you' in Italian?" The question was so unexpected I had to think about it for a minute.

"Mi manchi," I replied, wondering where in the hell that question came from.

Not giving me any clues about what was going on in her head she followed it up by saying, "How about, 'I need you'?"

"Ho bisogno di te,"I told her, revealing in the sound of her repeating what I was saying as though trying to commit it to memory.

Finally I couldn't take it any longer and I asked, "Why?"

She smiled and said, "I'm thinking of calling Dad later today and I wondered how he would react to hearing me use Italian. He tried to teach me some things when I was little, and I remember a little, but not much. Maybe if I attempt to use it around him he'll get the message that I'm sorry about how long he had to wait for me to get my courage up to stand up to my mother."

It was a perfectly valid explanation, but I was a little disappointed in it. Still, I was getting to hear her speak such beautiful words, and just as I expected her voice and lips formed it perfectly. If she wanted lessons in Italian I was defiantly willing to be at her disposal.

An hour later I was three blocks from the studio when Steph went in wearing her wire under her shirt, a tracker in the band around her hair, and a panic button in the pocket of her shorts.

I listened to every sound as she walked in, unable to figure out why I was so on edge.

Maggie addressed her pleasantly and she and Steph made small talk. Maggie told Stephanie that Raoul hadn't dropped off the packages yet which put me on alert that he would be showing up while she was in the studio alone with only Maggie as a witness for anything that might happen. "Les," I said over the comm unit.

"I know man, but unless he shows up and we have a reason to believe he's going to hurt her, we can't risk you running in there and blowing the cover. We are way too close to catching this bastard to pull her out now," he replied. I knew his words were right, but the tension in Lester's voice did nothing to calm me about the possibility that something big could go wrong this morning.

I was listening to every word coming through the wire as they discussed the town since Maggie was still technically new to the area. I was analyzing the conversation for threats when Stephanie surprised me and said, "I was reading about this rare genetic eye condition and learned that one of the leading specialists in cutting edge treatment was located in Trenton. Apparently, he is well known for trying anything to bring relief to the few people who suffer from this painful condition, and in recent months he's been having success with a combination of drugs that doesn't require young patients to have to lose their eye sight in order to escape the near constant pain the condition gives them."

There was silence on the line for a minute and then Maggie said, "Why would you tell me that?" Her voice was loaded with suspicion.

"Because a lot of people don't think about Trenton as being much of a hub for medical breakthroughs, and I just learned that yesterday. If you're going to make a life here, I thought it might be a comfort to know that even rare and virtually unheard of conditions are taken seriously here. It's like the comfort of a big city without having to deal with all the traffic." Steph was trying to back off the obvious clue that she knew Maggie's secret and I wondered what in the hell had gotten into her to make her do that. She had to know she was putting herself at risk.

Steph then said, "Is that Raoul's car pulling up?" which caused every muscle in my body to tense.

Maggie spoke softly and said, "It is, and Stephanie, you have to promise me not to say a word of what you just told me to my brother. He doesn't care about that, he just wants to focus on getting his deliveries made without incident. Please don't talk to him any more than you have to."

I could hear the urgency in Maggie's voice and prayed Steph would listen to her. A second later the bell over the door rang alerting us to Raoul's presence. Maggie excused herself leaving Steph and Raoul alone in the main studio. I tried to assure myself there was nothing to worry about because the entire front of the studio was open glass, but the voice in the back of my mind was screaming for me to get out of my truck and haul my ass in there to keep his dirty hands off of her.

"Stephanie, good morning," Raoul's voice creeped into my ear. "I was so glad you were here when I stopped by because I need to ask you something."

"Sure," Steph answered in a bubbly voice. It only sounded slightly tighter than normal which told me she was nervous about his question, but I doubted he could pick up on it.

"I wondered if you could tell me what you did with the note cards we provided you with the delivery addresses on them," he asked what I thought was a strange question.

"You didn't tell me what to do with them, so I have them in my glove box in the car out front. Shall I get them for you?" She asked innocently.

"Yes," he replied quickly, "I think I would like to have them back after each drop off."

I could hear them walking outside and began to relax slightly, knowing the more public their location the less likely it was for her to be hurt. "Here you go," she announced undoubtedly handing him the requested cards.

I could hear movement and then he replied, "And here are your drop offs for this morning." She must have taken the boxes from him to put them in her car. Raoul's voice cut through the line once more with a harder edge to it, sounding as though he were much closer than he had been because despite the raspy nature that usually indicated someone had dropped their vocal level he was suddenly much louder in volume. "I have no reason to doubt you, but I still feel the need to remind you that everything you do for me is not to be shared with anyone. And those packages must be delivered in tact. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Yes," she replied trying to assure him she understood. I figured she would be trying to high tail it away from him as quickly as possible, so I was surprised to hear her ask, "Have I done something wrong, Raoul? I mean, I thought I had dropped off the other packages just fine."

"No, Stephanie. Like I said, I don't have any reason to doubt you, but some unsettling complaints came to me last night, and I just wanted to remind you about our agreement," he said with his voice trailing off at the end as though he were walking away.

I heard Stephanie get in the car and crank it up before reading off a note card. It was the same address she went to the first time at the furniture store near the office. I guess his client had complained about the product not working, and now Raoul was forced to replace it. This could prove problematic. If we swapped it out for the placebo again Raoul might blame it on Stephanie. But if we did nothing and someone else was attacked, Steph would never forgive herself for playing a part in someone being hurt.

Steph played her role perfectly at the first two drops. But when she was getting out of the car at the third location I heard her say, "Shit!" I began to smile, picturing her stumbling or having some sort of struggle with the car door attacking. When she walked into the bakery that she was given as a delivery address the woman who received the package hesitated and then asked, "Is the seal broken?"

Steph began talking quickly, "No, but I did nearly drop it as I was getting out my car and in order to stop it from falling, I had to catch it against my leg and the tape there pulled a little. If you look closely you'll see I haven't actually opened the package, the wrapping is just a little distressed."

The lady must have picked up her phone to confirm receipt of the shipment but she added, "The wrapping was a little distressed, but it doesn't appear to have been opened." Well, I guess that explained the swearing Steph did in the parking lot.

It sounded like her cover up had saved the day and she had once more successfully completed her deliveries. I pulled up her tracker to see she was heading back to Haywood, so I waited in the garage for her.

I could hear her voice coming across the wire mumbling as she drove. It was hard to catch everything but she was apparently really upset with herself about nearly ruining the package and giving Raoul a reason to be mad at her. Then she began to ramble about the possibility of the replacement deliveries being used on girls in Trenton as though she had the same thought I did that if we tried to swap them out again Raoul would assume she was involved. Her head was all over the place and the longer she drove, the more worked up she was getting.

My cell phone rang just as she was pulling into an empty space. "Ciao," I answered in Italian, trying to help her relax now that she was done.

I wasn't expecting to hear her voice thick with tears say, "Ho bisogno di te."

Shit, she was quoting our quick lesson from this morning and saying she needed me. I nearly dropped my phone trying to run to her car while assuring her, "Sono qui, Bella." I repeated it in English, "I'm here, Bella," when she stood up and ran the short distance to me. I held her in my arms, unsure what else she needed but desperate to ease the way she was suffering. I whispered to her in Italian how it broke my heart to see her suffer, and how I would gladly do anything at all to ease this pain. I ended my rant by asking, "Che cosa posso fare?" over and over. I wanted to know what I could do, but I didn't have the courage to ask her in English. _(What can I do?)_

My arms tightened around her as a reflex when she responded, "lo stai gia facendo." _(You're already doing it.)_

How much of what I said did she understand? I didn't think she knew any Italian, and I was talking really quickly, so there was no way I'd buy her being completely ignorant about the language any more. Finally my curiosity won out over my good sense and I asked, "Can you understand me when I speak in Italian?"

She shook her head no without lifting it from my chest. Then she went on to explain, "Not really, but my Grandpa Plum used to pick me up when I was upset about something, and he would ask what he could do for me. I usually told him nothing and then one day he asked if it made me feel better when he picked me up, and I told him it did. So he taught me to respond by telling him he was already doing it instead of just saying nothing. I never forgot the phrases so when you said his part it just slipped out."

"Did you and your Grandfather get along?" I asked her not sure why.

She nodded yes and explained, "Until he died when I was twelve he was the last man I believed would never give up on me."

My mouth moved faster than my brain and I corrected her, "He isn't the only man that wouldn't give up on you."

This time her arms tightened around me and I hoped it was because she understood that I intended for her to trust that my name deserved to be on that list as well.

Steph's cell phone began to ring and she answered it without fully letting go of me. I heard her hello and then she said, "No it's alright." After a brief pause she added, "Of course I can stop by, when?"

She hung up her phone and I waited, having a feeling that whatever she just heard wasn't going to make me happy. "That was Maggie," she began. "She said Raoul has one last delivery for me and wants me to stop by the studio around five."

I didn't like that idea at all. It had disaster written all over it. "Let's go tell Tank," I told her before adding, "Because there is no way in hell you're going alone."

Luckily, she didn't argue the point with me. It only pushed the point home that she must have felt the danger around being called back between classes too.

We walked straight to Tank's office and I was surprised that she didn't hesitate but opened the door and walked straight in. He looked up and saw who had entered without permission, but he didn't say anything, so I assumed this was typical between the two of them.

"I'm in trouble," Steph began not bothering to hide what she thought about her phone call.

Tank raised an eyebrow, effectively giving her permission to continue. "Maggie called and said Raoul has another delivery for me to pick up from the studio at 5:00. I'm thinking he's upset about the condition of the packaging from the last one I dropped off this morning."

Tank ran his hand over his head and left it on the back of his neck. I knew that was his thinking position and waited to see what he'd say. "The DEA feels they've got most everything they need to get a conviction of sorts, but they were hoping for a few more days to pull it together before moving in for the arrest. I'll call our contact and see what he wants to do about tonight. I think, at the very least, we need to work out a contingency plan for you going with some heavy back up in case the government isn't ready to act."

"You've got to be kidding me," I practically yelled at Tank. He raised an eyebrow at me and kept his hand behind his neck, partially holding his head down. "If the DEA isn't ready we're just going to send her in to meet with him? This has set up written all over it."

"I agree with you, so get the hell out of my office and let me call our contact and see how he wants to handle it," Tank replied, keeping his voice perfectly even despite his vocabulary telling me he wasn't happy with the situation. The fact that he didn't say anything about my tone also told me how upsetting this was to him. He didn't like it any more than I did, he was just removed enough to keep his emotions in check.

"What do we do in the meantime?" I asked as we stood up.

"Go cool off, and I'll call you when we've got a plan for tonight. Stay close by in case we need to regroup quickly," he advised. I nodded and took Steph's hand in mine drawing her out of the office with me and walking straight to the elevator.

She was watching me intently but didn't question what was happening. It wasn't like her to be so quiet, but I really appreciated her not hitting me up for explanations. I felt like I was barely hanging on to what little control I had left. I was scared for her. Every instinct I had told me not to let her leave the building, and yet my gut told me the DEA was going to force her to go through with the meeting.

We took the elevator down one floor and I led her to my apartment. She'd only been here a couple of times before, and I hoped it was a place she could relax because I wasn't sure I could handle being anywhere that we were being watched.

As soon as the door closed I pulled her to me and held her closely. I felt as though I'd had her in my arms more today than ever before and wondered if it was making her uncomfortable. "I'm sorry Steph," I tried to apologize.

"For what?" She asked, with her head resting against me.

"For man handling you, and not being able to let you go," I answered unable to censure my thoughts while keeping from acting on the urges suddenly tearing through my body.

"You aren't manhandling me, and I don't want to let you go either," she admitted with a firm voice. There was no hesitation and no fear when she said it.

I pulled back confused by what was being said, and totally baffled by what hadn't been clarified. "Why don't you want to let me go?" I asked in a convoluted way.

"Because I trust you," she admitted. Damn, those were the words I so wanted to hear her say and yet now was the worst possible time for her to say them. This was supposed to be pretend, an acting job, nothing more. But somewhere along the way I stopped playing a role and began acting the way I wanted. Why didn't I see this coming?

"I trust you too," I told her, completely at ease with that confession. Me, the man who perfected casual distance with women, had let this little girl in despite the possible bodily injury I would endure should she be hurt as a result of our relationship.

She pulled back just enough to look at me and started to speak, "I know when this whole thing started we were just supposed…" but before she could finish that potentially loaded sentence, there was a loud knock at my door and Lester's voice from the hallway demanding we let him in.

She looked disappointed, as though she had finally gotten up the courage to do something only to have the moment ruined with an interruption. "I don't have to open the door," I tried telling her.

She half smiled, apparently appreciating the sentiment, but told me, "You may as well. I know Les and he'll keep knocking for up to an hour before he just picks the lock and comes in."

I was going to tell her I doubted Les would break into my apartment right now, but so far every time she'd expressed an opinion of people's behavior she'd been spot on, so I didn't bother to challenge her and just walked to the door, wondering if this interruption had just taken away my chance of hearing something important.


	15. Interruptions

_I owe a great debt to JE for creating such wonderful character for me to play with._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I owe you for taking my playing and turning it into a comprehendible chapter. Thank you for your work as the beta on Vince's story._

**Chapter 15 – Interruptions**

_Stephanie's POV_

I was surprised that I was able to keep from jumping out of my skin when the knock sounded at the door. When I heard Lester's voice demanding we let him in I didn't know if I should be pissed at the interruption or relieved that he stopped me from potentially making a complete fool of myself.

I had been so frightened when I got back to Haywood that I knew I was on the verge of getting over emotional to the point that I would fall apart. Instinctually I knew that I needed help, and Vince was who my heart wanted. He did exactly what I needed without me having to ask, and in the security of his arms I relaxed and was able to pull myself together.

But after the discussion with Tank I think we both realized that I was going to have to face Raoul this afternoon, and I was worried about what that would mean for me. When Vince brought us down to his apartment and the door shut behind us I could feel that hysteria fighting to break free once more, but the second Vince wrapped me up in his arms, apologizing for not being able to let me go, I relaxed again and knew in my heart I didn't want to be away from him. He was my anchor in this and for once admitting that I needed somebody wasn't making me want to run the other direction.

I don't know if was the multiple ways I knew tonight could go wrong, or the way I always relaxed completely when we were alone, but my mouth started to open and without thinking it through I was about to tell him that even though we began this mission intending to only pretend to be a couple, some how along the way it had become more than that, and I was not acting any more.

Would it have ruined what we have? Could I live with pushing him away by admitting my feelings if he didn't feel the same way? It seemed like he felt something for me, but I couldn't be sure. I mean, Lester held me and kissed my head and cared for me when I was falling apart, and I knew he wasn't in love with me. How could I be sure Vince wasn't just treating me in the same way? Plus, I had obviously mistaken attraction for love in the past. Is that all this was?

The second Vince opened the door Lester came in and drew me into his arms. He was worried, so I didn't pull away despite wanting to for some reason. He was reassuring himself that I was alright and trying to let me know that I had plenty of people watching over me and that I didn't need to worry, but the peace that came from being in Vince's arms wasn't there in Lester's. If anything I was picking up on his anxiety.

As soon as he relaxed his grip I pulled back and tried to subtly move back to Vince's side. He must have caught my movement because he closed the gap between us and put his hand on my back in that way that comforted and told me he was right behind me. Bobby was only a few minutes behind Les, so the four of us sat around discussing the possible outcomes for tonight, and how we could handle them.

Finally we decided to insist that Vince go with me. At five o'clock there was no reason to say he was working since we had already established his days began at seven, thus keeping him from escorting me on my nine o'clock deliveries. Just knowing Vince would be there and I wasn't going to be alone was enough to help me start breathing slower. No sooner had I thought that than Vince moved closer to me on the couch, removing the few inches that had been between us and whispered, "Lo sono qui e io saro con voi stasera" then he translated it for me, "I'm here and I'll be with you tonight."

I tried to keep from reacting to his words but my body acted with a mind of its own, and I could feel myself melting against him. An hour later another knock sounded and Vince didn't get up but nodded to Lester who jumped up to act as the doorman. It made me feel important if Vince would rather stay by my side than get up to answer his door.

Tank's massive body entered, and I realized the gang was all here now. "I've talked to the DEA, and they want you to go in tonight. This could be a test to be sure you're still on board, it could be an honest delivery opportunity, or it could be a trap. They aren't suspecting it as a trap and in their infinite wisdom they don't want to move it just yet. So, how do you want to handle it?"

Vince spoke up, "I'm going in with her tonight. There's no reason for me to stay away, and if anything, it maintains our cover. Les and Bobby will be close, and no matter what happens she isn't going to leave my side while we're there." That last part sounded a bit like a father laying down the law with his disobedient teenage daughter, but I elected to let it go, assuming Vince was as tense over this as I was.

Tank kept his blank face in place and then nodded. "Sounds good. I'll be there as well. I'm still pissed that the feds are forcing us to do this tonight. I think if it were one of their own agents they'd call it off, but because it's us instead they consider any trouble we might encounter to be of little concern." Yea, Tank was pissed. His eyes were narrowed, his jaw wasn't moving much, and I could feel the tension rising off of him.

We kept talking about the case, trying to figure out what was missing that the feds were still searching for, until Bobby announced, "It's 1630 hours, you two need to get a move on."

I had no idea it had gotten that late. The guys excused themselves to get in position near the studio ahead of us, leaving us alone once more. I ran to the bathroom and tried to talk myself into doing this. Realizing the time was here I forced myself to open the door and walk out. Vince was leaning against the wall with his head tilted back, looking up at the ceiling. If I had to guess it looked to me like he was giving himself a pep talk too. Maybe we were more alike than I realized.

He snapped out of whatever trance he'd been in when I approached, and he held his arms out giving me all the invitation I needed to walk to him and draw on the comfort that I only found against him. "You don't have to do this," he said, trying to give me an opportunity to back down if I didn't want to move forward.

"Yes I do. When it's all over I'll be glad I did it," I assured him, reminding myself of the truth as well.

I tipped my head back to look at him and I noticed how warm his eyes were. They were brown and the golden flecks were almost alive with their brilliance in coloring. He had one of those faces that was very expressive when he allowed it to be, but I couldn't really interpret what he was expressing at the moment. I thought I saw longing, like there was something he wanted to do but he was fighting the urge. Both our cell phones rang at once before we had a chance to talk anymore. We took the hint and made our way to the garage for Vince's truck to take us to Maggie's studio.

A group of little girls were pouring out of the door as we arrived, indicating the release of a class. It made me feel better that with this much traffic around the place that it might be okay.

Maggie looked up and saw both of us standing there and her face changed slightly. "Vince, how good to see you," she said, but I don't think either of us believed she meant it.

He nodded and covered perfectly by saying, "I'm always working when Steph makes her deliveries, so I was glad to be able to tag along since this one was later in the day."

Raoul came from the back, no doubt having heard us speak, and walked over to where we were. He began to make polite conversation with Vince, so I moved over the mirrors where Maggie had moved. "Are you okay?" I asked her, seeing the stress on her face.

"I'm fine," she assured me. "I just have a lot on my mind and some things are happening that are beyond my control that are a little stressful, so I'm struggling to stay on top of it all." I wondered if she wanted to tell me more but couldn't because of her brother's presence, so I asked, "Would you like to catch up over a cup of coffee tomorrow?"

Her eyes looked into mine for a minute and I held her gaze, hoping she understood that I was trustworthy. I could see her debating it but eventually she nodded her head yes. "There's a diner on fourth and Easton," I told her, referring to the dive that Vince and I had gone to regularly after dance class.

"I know it," she assured me. "I could be there around eleven."

"That sounds perfect," I confirmed. "It will give us a chance to talk, and I can buy you brunch since you've been so good to me."

Her face looked concerned when I mentioned her benevolence but she repeated, "Eleven," as I saw the men approaching us.

"I apologize for bringing you out for an evening delivery after assuring you only mornings would be required, but this is a rare occasion," Raoul spoke smoothly as though everything was fine. He handed me a box identical to the ones I'd already delivered and a card with the address for the bakery where I had delivered this morning and nearly dropped the package.

"Do I need to bring this card back tonight or can I drop it off in the morning?" I asked, trying to make it seem like I was taking this very seriously.

"I believe tomorrow morning would be fine," Raoul said much too smoothly.

With that we excused ourselves, and went out to the truck. Keeping our faces down to keep anyone from the street or the studio from reading our conversation I stated, "That was strange."

"Strange doesn't begin to cover it. He didn't seem upset at all about me being there," Vince replied. "It's almost like he expected it."

I told Vince about coffee with Maggie the next morning and he didn't look happy about it, but he liked the location and the time for the meeting. "Maybe I can get some information out of her that will help fill in whatever blanks the feds are looking for."

He agreed with that as we drove to the bakery I had dropped off a package to earlier. I was as careful as possible, and the lady made the phone call in front of me assuring someone that the package was in perfect condition. After that my work was done for the day, so I went back to the truck and let out a long breath, glad to have this whole stressful day finished. Obviously we had all overreacted, and I felt like my system was crashing a little to the let down.

"Dinner?" Vince asked.

My stomach growled before I could answer, as though my body felt the need to speak up before I could. "I think that would be best," I summed up. "But I don't feel like eating in a restaurant."

He nodded and turned to take us to Rossini's, calling in an order for two orders of sausage alfredo and two orders of tiramisu to go. He ran in and picked up our dinner, and I tried to keep from moaning all the way back to my apartment at the delicious smell coming from the take out bag.

We didn't bother to sit at the kitchen table, but spread the food out in the living room and dug in immediately. Vince ate with as much gusto as I did, and I realized how fun it was to be with someone who shared my love of food. We only opened one of the desserts and shared it in our typical way, swapping the container and taking turns. By the time it was gone, I was full and couldn't face any of the second serving. I don't know if Vince really was too, or if he just put it in the fridge so that we could share it later.

Once dinner was cleaned up it was only seven o'clock, so I turned on the game at the start of the Yankees playing the Red Sox. That was a major rivalry, so there was no doubt we'd watch it. During one of the commercial breaks Vince spoke up and asked, "Earlier today in my apartment you started to say something, but then Lester came in and interrupted you. What were you going to tell me?"

"Nothing," I lied, getting up quickly under the guise of grabbing us each another beverage.

Vince followed me into the kitchen, accepting the bottle of coke I offered him, opening it and then handing it back to me to take the first drink. I don't know why we seemed to share our beverages. There was no real need to do it for the cover of a relationship, but anytime there was a coke around we seemed to split it instead of each taking our own.

"I don't believe you," he said just before taking a long draw from the bottle with his eyes still focused intently on me.

"Too bad," I replied, snatching the bottle from his hands in order to have something to do other than stand there in silence.

"Why are you hiding from me now?" He pushed gently. "If you were going to say something then you must have known it would be alright."

There was no reason at all for me to respond the way I did. "Maybe then it fit because of how gentle you were being, but since you're being so pushy now it no longer applies."

"I'm not being pushy," he countered firmly without raising his voice.

"I told you there was nothing important to be said earlier, and you aren't letting it go. You're pushing," I explained.

His eyes narrowed and he uncrossed his arms, as though giving them permission to wave around. Oh this was going to be good.

"I'm not pushing. I'm just recognizing that before we were interrupted it felt like we were admitting something important, and I hated to think because people wouldn't leave us alone that things weren't said that maybe should be," he stated with a little more heat in his voice.

"Maybe some things can only be said under certain conditions and yelling in my kitchen isn't an acceptable environment for that kind of disclosure," I countered, taking a step toward him in a challenging way.

"Or maybe spouting off about conditions is just a front to hide behind to not have to face the truth of what's happening between us," he said, finally lifting an arm to gesture between the two of us.

"Who said anything about hiding?" I pushed back. "But if you're so big on everything being out in the open, then tell me what _is_ happening between us."

The surprise of me throwing that sentence back at him only registered briefly before he stepped closer and lowered the volume of his voice but not the intensity. "I think you were about to tell me in my apartment, and I want to hear what you were going to say."

Oh hell no, there is no way he's making me step out on that limb first. "So now it's my job to define things. You're mister macho- I'm the one who protects and provides for my woman- but when it comes to feelings I can't be bothered?" I moved slightly closer.

We were a mere few inches apart and I could literally see him taking slow deep breaths, battling within himself for control. I briefly wondered if I'd bitten off more than I could chew this time but before I could think of a way to soften the argument any, his eyes changed as though he'd come to a decision.

He moved to erase the minimal amount of distance between us and leaned into me, allowing his voice to take on a sexy rumbling quality to ask me, "Would it help if I told you that I don't understand what is happening between us, but whatever it is I don't think I can live without it?"

I nodded, trying to keep my eyes focused on his, but I couldn't help but glance down at his lips briefly. While I was distracted by their perfectly symmetrical shape I realized they were moving closer. Not able to think straight I pushed up slightly to eliminate the height difference and we met in the middle as our lips touched at first softly, tentatively, as though we were testing the water to see if it were safe to jump in.

His lips felt feathery soft against mine and from the moment we touched I found a feeling of warmth flowing over me, increasing my heartbeat, making me feel like I needed to draw in more air, but calming me at the same time.

He didn't back up so that when he next spoke the movement of the words fell against my lips, "Did I just ruin this mission because I couldn't hold back any longer?"

"It's only ruined if you plan on disappearing," I assured him quickly.

He made a strange growling sound in the back of his throat. Before I could begin to wonder what it was supposed to mean, he moved to press his lips against mine firmly taking possession of my mouth. As soon as his tongue darted out to trace my lips, I felt my mouth fall open and a sound that was a cross between a moan of pleasure and a sigh of contentment came out.

That must have been all the encouragement he needed as his tongue entered my mouth greedily consuming me; drawing all of my focus to him so that nothing mattered in this moment beyond getting as close to him as was physically possible. My hands traveled up his solid chest and ended their assent wrapped behind his neck; pulling him to me trying to be sure there was no way we could pull apart.

His arms made a path of their own beginning at my hips and moving up my back, tangling in my hair grasping a handful each to stake a claim of his own, preventing me from pulling away.

I had never been as overwhelmed at the act of kissing before in my life. With Joe, kissing was just a quick prelude to sex, an act necessary to get where he wanted to be. Ranger took kissing to a totally different level, effectively short circuiting my brain and taking away my ability to think about anything other than his body and what I'd like to do to it.

But kissing Vince was a whole new experience. My brain was pretty focused on his body, and I had no trouble thinking of things I'd like to do, but my heart was actively involved too. There was a feeling of being treasured and worshiped that went beyond just his attachment to my body. He was giving of himself in that kiss and freely letting me feel his emotions. The bond that we had forged over the last few weeks while pretending to be a couple had some how stopped being an act, and in this moment I knew it was real. I couldn't possibly question his sincerity as my tongue brushed against his in an attempt to taste and savor him, desperate to keep the connection between us.

I have no concept of how long we kissed in the kitchen. I do know that I was content to be in his arms and reveled in the passion something as simple as kissing could incite. As I moved my head to alter the angle of my face I allowed my teeth to rake across his bottom lip, and when that happened he growled once more causing my hips to press against his in response. That movement must have been invitation enough for him to release his hold on my hair and move one hand down my back to cup my ass and pull me tightly to him so that I could feel the effect our kissing was having on his body.

"Bedroom," I panted out, suddenly feeling the need to take control. As much as I liked kissing him my body was screaming for more, and I felt that if we didn't get some of the clothes between us off soon, the little spark that began when our lips touched was in serious danger of becoming an all consuming fire in the middle of the kitchen. I was all for spontaneity of love making, but I didn't really want our first time to be on the kitchen floor either since I hadn't mopped it in a couple of years.

He must have agreed with the sense of urgency I tried to convey because he bent over just enough to put a hand around the back of each of my thighs and then stood up, lifting me from the floor and wrapping my legs around his waist. From this angle the impressive bulge in his pants was hitting my center with every step and I whimpered at the thought of my first orgasm coming just from the walk from the kitchen to the bedroom.

I was lost and I didn't care. My eyes were closed and I loved the feeling of floating in his arms to wherever he wanted to take us. Never before had I been so comfortable with someone to surrender to them like this. I felt him turn and assumed we were heading from the kitchen down the hall to the bedroom when there was a pounding on the door.

Now it was my turn to growl at the thought of an interruption. My body was screaming 'No!' and hoping like hell that Vince would keep walking and ignore the knocking that didn't seem to be going away. He stopped moving, and I moved my hands from the grip I had around his shoulders attempting to hold some of my own weight to frame his face so that he wouldn't try to break away from me. For the first time in my life I was convinced that my sanity relied upon his ability to get us to the bedroom.

The noise stopped, and Vince once again began to move us to the bedroom. "Yes," I hissed against his lips, trying to encourage him that ignoring the door was the right move.

I cried out softly when I felt the wall against my back and my eyes shot open to see what he was doing. We couldn't stop; I so didn't want him to stop now. Vince had paused along the hall leading to my bedroom and was using the wall to support me so that he could press his body more fully against mine. I could feel his hunger and desire for me and knew he wanted this as badly as I did.

"Are you sure?" He asked, panting. "If we go in there like this, there's no turning back."

"I'm positive," I assured him. "Even if we don't go in there I can't go back." I promised, realizing just the feel of his kiss was addictive and I was already craving more. There was no way I could pull away. My mind couldn't comprehend it, my body was fighting against it, and my heart…my heart needed to be as close to his as possible.

His mouth covered mine as soon as I stopped talking and there were noises in the room that were born of raw desire and the fact that they weren't all coming from me only made the sense of urgency to get the few remaining feet to the bedroom complete.

We were both so lost in the moment that the deep loud voice that said, "Holy shit, you two are totally hot together," made me scream and Vince somehow managed to grab a gun from the back of his waist and point it at the intruder while still holding me against the wall.

Standing there with a goofy smile on his face was Erik. He had a folder in his hand, which I assumed was his reason for breaking and entering. I couldn't help but notice that Vince hadn't lowered his weapon despite the fact that we both knew Erik wasn't a threat. Arguably he was an idiot, but he was an idiot that meant no harm.

"What the fuck to you want?" Vince barked out, still supporting me against the wall with his right arm and his left managing to hold his glock perfectly steady.

"Tank told me to drop this off and made me promise to put it in your hand. He said you had to read it before you met with Maggie tomorrow," Erik said in a tone that told me he was just reciting a message, even though it held no real meaning for him.

"Alright, put it on the counter, then leave," Vince stated with a demanding tone. As Erik moved through the living room to the kitchen Vince kept his gun focused on him. "Lock the door back on your way out, and tell Tank that we don't want any more interruptions tonight or I may not be able to hold my trigger finger back the next time."

Erik visibly swallowed and paled slightly, which must have been hard to do for a guy with such dark skin. "Do you think you're being a little harsh?" I asked. "He was just delivering a message."

"No," Vince softened his voice completely to respond to me. "He was standing there getting a free show. That was not a part of his errand."

With that he turned his head back to where Erik was still watching us from the entrance way. "Do you have a reason to still be here?" Vince asked with the full level of aggravation present in his voice.

Erik was foolish enough to smile as he said, "I'm just enjoying the show, man. I wasn't kidding about you too being hot. I knew all those noises Bomber made while eating would mean she had a great appetite for other things too."

"Damn," Vince said in a strange voice.

"What?" I asked, worried about the sudden change in his mood.

"I thought he would just leave, but now it appears I'm going to have to shoot him," Vince threatened, giving Erik the necessary motivation to finally get out, locking the door behind him.

Once Vince was satisfied the locks were in place he returned his gun to his back and pulled his cell phone out. I continued to be supported by the wall, curious what call was so important it had to be made right now. The only clue I was given was his brief conversation of, "Yo, Erik just left Stephanie's apartment where he was an uninvited guest. I think he needs a firm reminder about respect." After a brief pause he added, "He seemed to think what happened in the privacy of her apartment was his business, and he made some comments about her appetites based on the noises she makes when she is enjoying a good meal." Slowly a smile spread over his face and he added, "That's exactly what I had in mind. Thanks, man, I owe you." Then he hung up without a goodbye.

I was curious who he called and what kind of lesson poor Erik was about to be taught, but the look in Vince's eyes when he clipped his phone once more cleared my mind of such meaningless questions and my body remembered where we were before we were so rudely interrupted.

He moved forward slightly and stopped just shy of my lips to ask, "The mood?"

"What?" I asked, unable to carry on a conversation right now with all my circuits screaming for him to stop talking and start kissing.

"Was it ruined?" He clarified.

I smiled and rolled my bottom lip between my teeth before replying, "Only if you stop."

That answer earned me a sexy laugh before he said, "Non sto a fermarsi fino il sole si awicina." Hearing him speak Italian tore me between the desire to demand he keep talking and the urge to clamp my lips over his to make speech impossible.

Thank God Vince was so diligent in his work out regimen. I knew he had the endurance to back up his reply which he translated with warm breath against my neck, "Bella, I'm not stopping until the sun comes up."


	16. Until the Sun Comes Up

_I don't think JE meant for any of this to happen even though she created these characters._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) sorry about the hot flashes, but I do appreciate you pressing on to finish spinning your beta magic on this story._

**Chapter 16 – Until the Sun Comes Up**

_Vince's POV_

"Bella, I'm not stopping until the sun comes up," I assured Steph just before I sealed my lips around her neck and sucked the ivory skin into my mouth, tasting the warmth of her against my tongue.

Her head fell against the wall hard and I let the suction go briefly, hoping the hit against the sheetrock hadn't hurt. "Bedroom," she whispered on a panting breath. I tightened my grip on her and easily carried her small frame the remaining few feet into her bedroom.

I paused briefly unsure of what to do next. I was no inexperienced teenager, but for the first time my experience was paralyzing me as the possibilities flooded my mind. Did I want to take her standing up against the wall? The way her body felt against mine as I had her pressed there was making me so hard I was afraid my dick was going to tear through my jeans to break loose on its own. I could lay her down on the bed and savor her, tasting and exploring her body, taking my sweet time to make love to her. The thought of that had my erection throbbing in expectation. As I was deliriously kissing her, lost in all the ways I could pleasure her, she must have found her way to coherent thought first.

"Vince," she said with her teeth lightly tugging at my ear. Shit, I didn't realizing my ears were that sensitive.

"Yes Bella," I managed to croak out, hardly recognizing the depth of my voice.

"Put me down," she instructed and I found myself obeying immediately even though my body hated the idea of there being any distance between us.

Surprisingly she didn't step back as I expected her to. She reached between us and pulled her t-shirt up over her head and threw it to the floor beside us. I could feel the material traveling up my chest as we were standing so close. Following her lead I reached behind my head and drew my own shirt off, tossing it on top of hers. Her hands ran over my chest, stopping their movement only long enough to kiss the two bullet made scars on my shoulder. I shivered as her tongue moved from the old wounds of a mission gone wrong and down to my pecs.

I was about to come in my pants like a control free teenager, and we still had on most of our clothes. How would I survive it when her naked body was against mine?

When her hands made their way to my waist she said, "These pants have to go."

"Yours too," I said wishing my voice didn't have such an element of desperation in it.

We pulled apart long enough for me to get my weapons off and the remaining clothes to end up heaped on top of each other on the floor. When I drew my eyes back to her I struggled to pull in a full breath. I didn't have to look down to know there was a bead of sticky juice of the end of my cock. It was just a drop in the bucket of what was soon going to be there. How was I ever going to hold back the fierceness of how I wanted to take her? After being around her so much over the last month I had no idea how to fight the urge to love her freely and control the need that was quickly getting to an unmanageable level.

"Vince?" Steph said my name this time as a question.

I heard the uncertainty and wondered if she was having second thoughts about what we were doing. Oh God, it would kill me to try and back off now, but if it's what she wanted I would certainly try.

"Che cossa posso fare per voi?" _(What can I do for you?)_ I asked, not sure why it came out in Italian.

"It's been a while," she started nervously. If anything, the hesitancy in her manner right now made me want to pull her to me even harder. Finally she seemed to find some sort of inner strength and she pressed her body tightly to mine and finished her thought. "I need it now, I can't take it slow and drawn out yet. I need you to let go of this control and give me what I need."

"I want to take care of you," I tried to explain, letting my hands glide down her shoulders to her wrists. "I don't want to hurt you, but the way I feel is so strong I'm afraid if I let go it will be too much."

"Trust me," she countered in a challenging way, "It won't be too much."

With that her hips thrust forward slamming against my thigh and her fingers dug into my chest, her nails scratching me and causing waves of pain to turn into a temptation of the pleasure about to come. I couldn't hold back now even if I wanted to. My mind turned off and my instincts took over as I lifted her once more to wrap her long beautiful legs around my waist, positioning her molten center just at my tip. My knees threatened to buckle at the sensation, knowing I was so close.

"Now!" Stephanie growled, showing me she was just as desperate as I was. I moved so that the wall was against her back to offer some additional support. Then I rolled my hips back, lifting her slightly with my hands under her ass, and put myself exactly at her opening. She wiggled her hips impatiently trying to draw me inside her. The movement was doing me in, and I allowed her to move back down, sheathing me in her hot body. I had to put a hand on the wall behind her head to support my own body from crumbling under the sensation of her surrounding me.

Never, never had I felt anything so tight and hot. Her muscles were rippling with need, drawing my erection further in her and displaying their insistence for release. "Bella," I said my name for her slowly, allowing each syllable to sound around us, hoping she understood how much I wished I could make this last.

"Please," her whisper broke me again and I pulled my hips back before slamming into her deeply. "Yes!" she screamed in response, digging her nails into the backs of my shoulders once more and flooding me with a need to drive into her hard and fast.

Unable to fight it anymore, I did just that and our bodies began to move against each other and with each other, filling and refilling the void until the sounds of the room could no longer be heard above the thudding of my heartbeat in my ear. Soon, much too soon, I felt my balls begin to tighten and I knew I was about to erupt. Her muscles gripped me with an impossible tightness, and I relaxed knowing she felt the same way I did.

I vaguely heard her scream my name as I thrust into her one final time so hard that my head hit her womb. In the back of my mind I wondered it I was hurting her, but all my other modes of thought were blank, overwhelmed with the sensation of the heat between our bodies and the waves of pleasure that seemed to be overtaking me beginning at my groin and moving straight to my heart. I'd never had sex before where I felt like my heart was as pleasured as my body. But my chest was warm and tight, feeling full of this woman who was still struggling to catch her breath with her head resting on my moist shoulder.

"Bed," she said between shallow breaths. I nodded still not able to get my voice to work. Honestly I was worried that my legs wouldn't hold us in order to make the short trip from her wall to the mattress. Fortunately they did and still joined together I sat down, forcing her to make the decision of whether or not she was going to pull away from me to lie down. As powerful as the orgasm was just moments before, my body was still hard and as my breathing came under my control once more I knew I could begin over again right away.

Stephanie was perfectly still so I began to move my hands up and down her back, trying to keep my calloused fingers as light as possible against her smooth skin. The shiver that ran along her spine was the first clue I had that she was returning once more to the land of the living. The moan that followed it was an additional clue that her body felt much the same as mine.

"I'm sorry," she said with her face still glued to my shoulder.

"For what?" I asked, unable to think clearly enough to figure out what she was talking about.

"I basically attacked you," she slurred out with one breath, drawing another deep on to finish her thought. "And now I want more."

"Oh thank God," I spoke aloud as I spun around, drawing myself from her body in order to begin afresh, "Because I'm nowhere near done."

She made a sound of displeasure at the movement pulling us apart, so I swore to myself that would be the only complaint she made this night regarding how her body was treated.

I lifted her and pulled her up to rest her head on the pillow and then used my knee to push her legs apart enough to make room for me between them. She obliged and made a sound much like the one that would escape her while eating a cheeseburger. I now had a goal. I needed to hear what the next level of satisfaction sounded like. I couldn't do that if I was so ruled by own pleasure that my ears were flooded by the sound of my heartbeat. I was going to hold back and focus solely on her gratification, giving her all that I could to push her limits of what she'd experienced before. Hopefully I could manage that without coming on the sheets.

I began by pressing my torso against her, letting some of my weight fall on her body and reconnecting my skin with hers. I watched her eyelids flutter as though she were struggling to keep them open before giving up and moving her hands from my sides to the pillow above her head. She was submitting to me, lying before me completely naked and trusting me with a blind faith that I wouldn't hurt her. What had I done to deserve this kind of trust?

My chest grew tight once more and my breathing caught as I realized I would prove to her that I was worthy of her trust. I would treat her heart as gently, and love it as completely as I was about to handle her body. Hopefully she would feel that to be true because I wasn't good with talking about my feelings, and this was one instance when I hoped my actions would speak louder than words. Thank goodness there were some expressions that held obvious meaning.

I pushed my body forward, suspending my head over hers in order to place a kiss in the palm of one of her hands. The action must have surprised her as her hand flexed quickly before relaxing once more. A quick look to her face showed me a slight smile, so I assumed my beginning was being well received. My tongue darted out to trace the love line in her palm up to her index finger, which I sucked into my mouth and cradled in the pad of my tongue.

She let out a soft unhurried moan, which caused a light ripple of goose bumps to break out over my skin. I began to move from her hand making my way down her arm, placing unhurried kisses along the tender skin available to me. She had the sweetest smell; sweet like vanilla cookies mixed with a soft flower. By the time I got to her neck my tongue was taking thick greedy tastes of her skin trying to memorize her unique taste, savoring and delighting in it.

She moved her head to the side marginally to give me more room to feast on her. It was such a small gesture, but its effect on me was sudden. I bit down where her neck and shoulder met, drawing the skin in my mouth and marking her much as she did our first morning together. I drew back and smiled at my mark on her beautiful neck. I hoped it could be seen over her shirt collar as I wanted the world to know she was mine.

I could see her arms tightening as though she were trying to keep from moving them in order to allow me to keep up my torture of loving her. I shifted my weight to allow the use of one of my arms and I lifted her hand, moving it to my chest over my heart. Her eyes opened at the unexpected movement, and I looked at her intently before saying, "Touch me, Bella," once more drawing out the last word hoping she understood I wanted to feel her hands on me as well.

She didn't even blink, giving me the ability to see past the walls she had held up for so long. Looking straight into her soul, I saw only beauty and passion, and a love unlike anything I'd ever dreamed of. She knew me as I knew her. There had been no acting between us in some time. There were no more doubts that this experience, these feelings, were all real.

I single tear ran from her eye across the side of her face and escaped into her hair. I leaned down once more to kiss its path, hoping she knew it tore at me to see her so vulnerable. Her hand moved from my chest to my side and held me in place to speak in my ear, "This is all real?"

"Si, questo e tutto vero," I assured her. "This is all real."

A sweet whimper came from her throat that spurred my body once more to return to her and I began to use my fingertips as a guide to touch her before my mouth followed, kissing and touching her beautiful skin. Occasionally she would shiver encouraging me that she liked the way I was worshiping her body. I wanted to come out of this experience having every inch of her engrained in my memory and in all my senses. I wanted to be able to recall the smell of her skin or the taste of her even when we were apart.

I skipped her breasts, despite desperately wanting to lavish them with attention, and moved further down her stomach, stopping to taste her navel, loving the gentle curve of her hips that sloped to her long legs. Her skin was so smooth, so silky that I was completely lost in the few inches I was touching at that moment. It was not until I worked my way back up her leg to her hot center that I noticed the small patch of hair with a tiny bead of moisture caught in it. My tongue darted out, taking that droplet for myself, not realizing the effect the tiny taste would have. I needed more and I needed it immediately.

Both my hands moved under her hips in order to tilt her up, providing me better access to her dripping core. I tried to be gentle and keep my movements slow, but the smell of our juices mixed together and the slick feel of her skin made it impossible to hold back, and I pulled her sensitive nub between my lips, opening my mouth to suck on it. Her hips bucked against the sensation and both of her hands tangled themselves in my hair.

I could hear her chanting my name, pleading for more, begging for release and I acted swiftly to give her what she desired. I pulled one hand from her back side and pushed two fingers deep within her, moaning at how hot and wet she was against my skin. My mouth continued to toy with her clit alternating between gentle licks and hard greedy sucking. I curved my fingers and began to pump them in time with the movement of her body. I felt her pull my hair as her grip increased ten fold and she screamed loudly. The wetness of her body poured out across my fingers with droplets settling into my palm. I released my mouth from the hold it had on her in order to dip down and drink up the nectar from between her legs. I was not new to a woman's body, but never before had I found the taste as sweet as hers. It reminded me of eating ice cream at the beach. There was the delicious taste of dessert with the slight hint of salt on your lips that made the stark contrast that much more delicious.

Her fingers held fast in my hair and I loved the fact that I had caused her to lose control that way. Eventually she began to relax and I realized she was talking. It was very soft as she repeated my name pleading, "Please, Vince, please," over and over again.

I moved up her body quickly, allowing my chest to touch her skin from her hips up to her breasts in order to keep as much connection between us as possible while I moved to better understand her chant. "Please what, Bella?" I asked her, knowing I would give my soul to provide her whatever she needed at this moment.

"Please let me feel you inside me," she clarified, pulling her legs up at the knee and pushing herself against me. "Ho bisogno di te," she said, telling me that she needed me. I knew hearing her speak Italian to me in bed would be my undoing. Just when I thought she couldn't get any sexier she says something like that with the inflection perfect and I realize I was wrong.

I put my hand on her hip to hold her still in order to enter her slower, not wanting to rush this time. I wanted to feel this connection for as long as possible. She was so wet I glided in smoothly, smiling when she gave me a deep throaty moan that was a satisfied sound much more intense than anything she'd ever given to her food. I knew her sounds in the bedroom would be beyond what I could imagine.

I couldn't believe how natural it felt to be enveloped by her; to feel us moving together as though our bodies were one. Strangely, it was both exciting and new while also feeling as though bodies were at home with a familiarity normally only developed over time. We were fashioned to fit together perfectly, and the dance of our hips pushing and pulling together and apart chased any thought from mind, my only focus the feel of her beneath me and around me.

I felt her nails scratching down my back once more and if anything the light pain from the pressure only increased my pleasure, and I felt my strokes become more forceful, pushing myself deeper into her tight confines.

Her muscles began to grip me with a constant pressure, and my body responded on the next thrust by spilling deeply within her. I heard a growl in the room and thought it came from me, but I had no memory of allowing it. I was temporarily blinded as my eyes snapped shut and light behind my eyelids danced a random pattern while my body shuttered against the lasting feel of what was the most powerful orgasm I'd ever experienced.

My biceps were beginning to shake from the near constant use of holding my weight and the exhaustion of what we'd just completed was washing over me. I rolled to the side, chuckling at the unhappy sound Steph made as I slipped from her body. She turned to me, moving into her sleep position with her leg hooked over my hip and her body closer than it had ever been while we rested. I had no experience in being accepted and loved completely and unconditionally, but in this moment I recognized that is exactly what she was doing. She didn't need to tell me, I could feel her heart as sure as my own and I knew it was true.

"Sonna Bella," I told her to sleep and tightened my hold on her unwilling to allow any space between us. I needed to keep her close to me while I adjusted to how this felt. It was too new and overwhelming and my body was screaming for more.

I could feel her breathing slow down, and I smiled as I began to relax slightly. I could feel a slight stinging coming from the scratches on my back that her nails made during our passion, and I smiled at the revelation that the pain insured I wasn't sleeping. This hadn't been a dream.

The next morning as I was still suspended in that strange state between waking and sleeping, my mind was still wandering and I was imagining Steph's mouth on me tasting me as I had done last night. The dream was so real I could hardly believe it. My body was responding to the unconscious experience and a moan rumbled in my chest.

The act of making a sound caused me to fully wake up and I realized I wasn't dreaming. Her hot little body was on top of mine currently traveling down my stomach, barely tickling. Realizing she had awakened before me and was confident enough to help herself to what she wanted caused me to smile as my eyes opened.

"Oh thank God," she said in a voice that dripped with sexual desire.

"What?" I asked in a deep morning timbre.

"I've been waiting for you to wake up," she said with a warm breath blowing across my hard morning wood.

"Why were you waiting?" I asked, beginning to tense with anticipation.

"So I wouldn't scare you," she explained.

"Why would you scare me?" I asked thinking it must be early if I wasn't able to follow conversation any better than this.

"Because I wanted to do this," she began to explain. Then her voice stopped and her wicked smile faded while her mouth opened and her tongue ventured out to lick the moisture from my tip. She brought it slowly into her mouth and shut her eyes like she was tasting a first bite of a Boston Crème doughnut. If she wanted cream I could definitely help her out with that.

Before I could get over my clever play on words, her tongue came out again and ran from my base to the tip. Without pausing she opened wider and drew me into her mouth. My fists bunched the covers as I tried to hold onto some sense of control. Trying not to slam myself down her throat and give her the chance to explore my body as she had allowed me last night.

She used her hand to grip my base and worked it in concert with her mouth which was sucking and nipping at me, quickly driving me out of my mind. My entire body felt like it was on fire, and I was going to explode. "Steph, I can't handle much more," I warned her. I wasn't sure if the sound she made was a moan of pleasure or a demand that I handle it anyway so I tried to hold still.

Then her free hand moved from my thigh and cupped my balls, softly at first, then the tension in her hand grew and she began to massage them firmly enough to drive me insane. My hips shot forward driving me deeper into her mouth. This time I knew the sound she was making was one of pleasure. She took a deep breath through her nose and pulled even more of me into her mouth.

I moved one hand from the sheet into her hair, wanting to feel her but still afraid to let go of my grip on the bed, hoping it would anchor me to reality and keep me still for a little while longer. But once I touched her I should have know my control would go to hell. The suction of her mouth increased and I could almost feel her drawing my orgasm out of me.

My hips began to buck against her and she didn't back down, keeping up her rhythm and forcing me to come with a force I'd never felt before. She relaxed her left hand, moving it back to my leg and while her rhythm stopped she continued to suck me as she drew her mouth painstakingly slowly back to the tip. When she pulled herself up to her knees and slung her wild curls behind her I could feel my dick responding despite the powerful way I'd just cum.

The pulsing wasn't lost on her, and she bent at the waist stalking her way from between my legs, up my torso, settling her core right over my erection, teasing me by rubbing it up and down, coating me with the slick juice from her body. Apparently, waking me up had turned her on as well because she was literally dripping in anticipation. If I hadn't already been willing that would have made me.

She pushed herself up once more, taking control and positioning me perfectly with her hand between us. Then she moved down, her mouth opening and her eyes closing as she progressed. I drew my knees up slightly which changed the angle and gave me a better position for appreciating the beauty of her body displayed in front of me.

I lifted my hands and cupped her breasts, loving the feel of her rock hard nipples against my palms. I'd never known someone so responsive. Seeing how something like my gentle massage of her chest was making her bite into her lower lip made me want to give her more. I sat up, pulling her legs from where they were straddling me to wrap them behind me. From this position I bent down and drew one nipple into my mouth, trying to be easy in case it was too sensitive, but when she called out, "Yes," I found the strength of my mouth's caress increasing.

I could feel the strain in my back as I used both hands to stimulate her nipples, alternating where my tongue and mouth were positioned and loving the way her hips were holding the rhythm between us. I could feel her orgasm beginning and allowed my teeth to gently bite into her, hearing her scream at that exact moment. When her muscles clamped down on me I felt my own body erupt within her, and I wrapped my arms around her holding her to me forcefully, unable to bear the thought of separating from her.

She didn't fight my need to hold her. Then she pulled her legs from behind me and pushed her body against mine to make me lie back with her still on top of me and captive in my arms. Why did I feel the need to hold her tightly? I didn't want to scare her, I wasn't one of those controlling jackasses, but I couldn't let her go.

We were both breathing hard, and I knew it would be easier for us both if I lessened the strength of my grasp. Steph then surprised me. Her hand moved between us in order to stroke my hair. She placed a series of light kisses along my jaw and continued to stroke her fingers lazily across my head, relaxing me and assuring me she wasn't in a hurry to get up. Slowly I felt my arms relax and the sense of panic leave at the thought that we would have to leave this room where the last ten hours had been surreal.

"I know," she whispered softly. "I wasn't really prepared for what it would be like to give myself to you. It caught me off guard too." That explained it perfectly. I dipped my head to capture her mouth in a deep kiss, not trying to reignite the passion, but trying to let her know how deeply I felt for her.

When our lips broke we spoke at the same time, the same words that we had been telling each other all night in physical form, but were just now able to say aloud, "Ti amo." _(I love you.)_

Somehow we managed to get out of bed and into the bathroom together. I wondered how we would ever get dressed because we had been unable to move without maintaining some sort of physical contact so far this morning. In the shower we bathed each other; an act so intimate I wondered why people felt the need to speak of love with so many words. Her fingers sent that message directly to my heart and the look in her eyes told me she heard my reply just as clearly.

Toweling off we held hands to return to the bedroom and finally managed to separate long enough to pull on clothes. The first shirt she put on did nothing to hide the multiple marks I had left on her, so she swapped out the scoop neck for a collared RangeMan polo. I watched her hips wiggle from side to side as she pulled up her shorts and realized Stephanie was the only woman I knew capable of making the process of getting dressed every bit as sexy as getting naked.

Finally ready to face the day, I took her hand in mine and lead the way back out to the kitchen for some food. Just as I realized there was nothing in her apartment for breakfast a knock at the door and Lester's voice announcing he had been the Tasty Pastry made us both smile.

Steph went to the door, checked the peep hole first, and then opened it. I tapped down the possessive feeling that came over me when Les stepped in and pulled her into his arms to hug her. They moved to the kitchen where Lester deposited a large white bag in the middle of the cabinet and then looked at us both closely.

If he thought she looked strange after having an erotic dream a few days ago, it was nothing compared to the obvious glow she was sporting right now. There was a little bit of a mark still visible on her neck around the collar of her shirt, and I could see Lester's eyes land it. They narrowed and he turned his head to face me.

Stephanie's voice rang out as she said, "Lester Santos, if you lay one hand on amore mio I'll hit you myself." She called me her love and I couldn't stop the stupid grin that erupted on my face.

I walked over to her and asked, "Did you just call me your love?"

She nodded and offered me a shy smile.

I lowered my face and placed a soft sweet kiss on her lips. As we pulled apart I said, "Mio Bella," announcing that she was my Beautiful, trying to put more emphasis on the word 'my'. She was mine and I would never let her go.

Lester cleared his throat, bringing us back to reality. I moved beside her but kept a hand lightly on the small of her back. His critical gaze softened slightly and eventually turned into a genuine smile. "You're back," he said to Stephanie.

"You were right," she replied, leaving me completely out of the conversation.

"I usually am," Lester smarted off before asking, "What about?"

"You said my heart would open itself when I met the right guy and he showed me what it was like to trust again. I swore I would never allow it, but you were right. My heart overrode me," she explained. I moved my hand from her back to her hip pulling her closer to my side.

"Happy?" he asked as an obvious follow up.

"Yes," we both answered at once. I wanted this case over. I wanted us to be free of the time constraints so that I could take her away for a while and let us build on what we started last night. I wanted to open every part of my life to her, and I wanted it to start right now.

Lester reminded us why he was there when he pointed to the folder Erik dropped off last night. "I'm guessing you guys were too tied up to read what Tank pulled together yesterday."

And just like that we were brought back to reality. We moved to the living room, each armed with a doughnut, to be briefed on what ever new fact had been uncovered. Settling down on the couch with her at my side I realized for the first time ever I had a partner. Not just for a case, but for life.

I felt the need to correct my earlier answer to Les. I wasn't just happy. What I felt was way beyond that and increasing by the moment.


	17. Darkness Falls

_JE's characters and creation._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I really can't thank you enough for working as the beta on this story. Your gentle suggestions and steady corrections are shaping this into a much better tale._

**Chapter 17 – Darkness Falls**

_Stephanie's POV_

I walked into the diner and smiled when Maggie stood up with her hand raised to show me she was there despite the rest of the restaurant being empty. Honestly, how the place stayed in business was beyond me since I don't think I'd ever seen another customer in there when I'd eaten there.

I sat down tossing my bag in the booth, feeling uneasy about my back being to the door. I guess working with the guys had gotten me used to thinking about my safety. It was never an issue when I ate with Vince because I knew he was constantly watching over me and scanning the area for potential threats. Still, my bra had a microphone in it, my hair was tied back with a tracker in it, my pocket had a panic button, and my purse was full of items I knew I hadn't put in there, so I assumed they were various trackers or devices from RangeMan that could some how provide me with an extra measure of protection.

"Thanks so much for suggesting this," Maggie said when I sat down.

"I was just glad you could make it. I wasn't sure what your teaching schedule was like," I replied, trying to keep things light hearted at first.

This morning Lester had walked me through the case the DEA had. They had enough evidence for an arrest of Raoul and unless they had some good reason to think otherwise, they considered Maggie to be equally involved as her brother and they intended to arrest her as well. The only hope she had was to testify against her brother, if my theory was right that she was being forced into her role as intermediary because Raoul was using the leverage of her son against her.

We ordered coffee and food from the breakfast menu. Despite having just eaten three doughnuts at my apartment, I was still ready for the plate of pancakes I knew would be arriving from the kitchen.

Once the food was placed in front of us I knew from experience that we wouldn't be interrupted again, so I tried to come up with a transitional sentence to turn the conversation where it needed to be. Fortunately Maggie helped me with it by asking, "The other day, when you were looking at the pictures on the wall, why did you ask about the one with me holding the little boy?"

Wow, that was direct. I decided to try a little honesty and replied, "It was a beautiful picture and it drew my eye to it. When I saw it, I thought the resemblance between the two of you was so striking that it had to be your son."

A look of sadness came over her face, making her look older than her twenty eight years. I decided to try pushing a little to see if she might open up to me. "The resemblance was enough to make me certain, but your reaction when I asked convinced me that, despite what you were saying, you have a son."

Maggie inhaled sharply and her eyes immediately were drawn to mine, shock being evident on her face. Finally, she took a deep breath and shook her head, correcting me by stating, "I _had _a son."

I looked at my watch and it was already 11:30, so I decided to just jump in with both feet. "You _have_ a son. The fact that he lives with your Aunt doesn't change who his real mother is."

Her eyes snapped to mine in horror and surprise. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"I know that you had a son named Christopher, and a few months ago it was reported that he died in an auto accident. He had a rare eye condition that usually is considered genetic, running only in families, skipping generations. Then your Aunt receives a child to care for named Chris with the identical disorder. That isn't coincidence Maggie, it's fraud." I knew I was showing my hand, but my gut told me it was the only way to get to the truth.

A tear fell down her cheek, and she made no attempt to wipe it away as she stared out the widow to the empty parking lot. I knew the guys were just out of sight in their RangeMan vehicles listening to every word. It took a lot of convincing for them to let me come without a small army as support. This was just brunch with a dance teacher in broad day light in a public place. In the end I had Les and Bobby a block away to the north in their truck and Tank and Vince the same distance to the south. They wouldn't be seen, but if I alerted them to trouble they could be to me in a matter of minutes.

She nodded before speaking. "My son was in near constant pain. He would cry and scream for hours, unable to take the strong pain relievers, but unable to function without some sort of intervention. He would pull off masks or eye patches. The doctors said to keep him in a room that was pitch black so that no strain was put on his eyes to try and see things, but children are afraid of the dark."

She stopped as more tears fell. "My brother had a PhD in chemistry from an American University and an MD from Columbia, where our father was from. He had been working at a drug company in the research and development area in Miami. I told him about Christopher and how the doctors couldn't help him and I didn't know what to do. He went to his boss and suggested they try and engineer a product to blind a patient chemically, without putting them to sleep in the process, to allow Christopher to function without the pain that vision caused him. They looked into it, but in the end they said there weren't enough patients with this disease to make creating the drug profitable."

She moved her hands to her coffee cup, as though she were trying to draw warmth from it. "Raoul started acting strange after that. He spent a lot of time working in his lab at home, obsessed with Christopher. When he came up with a compound that he thought would work he tested it on our Aunt first who had learned to deal with her pain by using blindfolds and morphine. After the first few tries he got the compound just right and began to talk to doctors about it. Most of them refused to listen to him. I think he was rejected one too many times and something snapped in him one night when he came to me, agitated and talking about how he could both make money with this drug and use it to assist Christopher, but he needed my help."

I put my hand on her wrist when she paused the next time, knowing my microphone was picking up every word and the guys back at RangeMan were recording this to help clear her name with the DEA. She couldn't stop talking now. "He needed me to get people to deliver the drug to his different clients, and he would pay them for it. I had plenty of students who needed money, so it was easy to find volunteers. I didn't have anything to do with it at first; I just connected them to Raoul."

Her tears began again and I waited. "Then last November I had Christopher at his doctor for a check up on his eyes and the medicine Raoul had given him hadn't worn off, so he was still blind. The doctor asked what had happened, and I explained how my brother had been helping him. The doctor threatened to report me to child protective services for endangering my child. All I was doing was keeping him from hurting and they were going to take my baby away." She broke down, sobbing, so I stood up and moved next to her.

"Raoul suggested if everyone thought Christopher was dead then he could monitor him and no one would be the wiser about what we were doing to help him. He said once he got general acceptance for his medication that he would find a way for us to bring Christopher back into my life. I didn't want to do it, but when you are talking about loosing your child, you sometimes run out of options. I couldn't bear to watch him hurt so I went along with the plan in order to save him the suffering of having to live without his treatments from Raoul." As she pulled herself together I had a feeling the next part was going to be harder to hear.

"But after we faked Christopher's death Raoul began to pressure me for more girls to deliver his products, and I noticed one of them had been beaten when I saw her in a store. She refused to talk to me and ran away from me crying. When I asked Raoul about it he told me I shouldn't put my nose in his business because he was doing all of this for me, and if I tried to interfere he'd report me to the authorities. He told me that I'd never see Christopher again." Her anger was easy to pick up on as she spoke.

"Over the last few months he's completely changed from the brother I once knew. He's mean now, and when I realized he was also suddenly loaded I started looking into his business. He managed to find some doctors who were interested in his product, so I know some of his deliveries were legitimate. But most go to terrible men who use it to hurt women. Those are the people who are making him rich. I tried talking to him in Miami a couple of months ago and he turned violent with me. He decided to move his business up here, telling me it was because there was a doctor that specialized in Christopher's condition, so I was excited. Then after we arrived I realized it was because he was mixed up with some kind of family that gives him lots of money for his drug so they can control and hurt people with it. The man that I knew as my brother is gone. All that's left is that greedy horrible man, but I can't do anything about it. He controls my ability to see my son, and he is paying for his care so I have to do what he says." Her anger burned out quickly and she ended up quiet once more.

She pulled herself together and turned to face me and asked, "What could I do? I knew it was wrong to help him, but I couldn't risk him allowing harm to come to Christopher."

I tried to console her that she had done the only thing she could do, all the while feeling so sorry for the horrible position she had been in. If I were in her place, would I have acted any differently? Would I care what laws were broken if it meant keeping my family safe and alive?

Some how we got back to our food, but neither of us seemed to have much of an appetite. An hour later we stood up to leave. I hugged her and said, "I'm so sorry for all you've gone through. I don't know how I can help, but I promise you I'll do anything I can."

At that Maggie pulled back and gripped my arm tightly. "No, Stephanie. Oh God, I've been so selfish talking the whole time and I completely forgot why I wanted to meet with you today. You can't do anything. You have to keep making the deliveries for Raoul and do them right. He's beginning to get suspicious about you already because of some complaints. You can't give him a reason to think you know any of this. He won't hesitate to hurt you."

"I'm not worried about Raoul," I lied. "I'll keep delivering his packages, but if I can find a way to help you at the same time I'm going to do it."

"I like you," she replied softly, "I really do. Please don't do this. I can't live with the guilt of thinking I caused someone else to get hurt by my brother."

We eventually let go of each other and I tossed some money on the table to cover our uneaten food. She mentioned visiting the ladies room before leaving and I followed her back there since the suggestion alone was all it took for my bladder to remind me I'd gone through three cups of coffee this morning.

After taking care of Mother Nature's call, I stepped out of my stall still fussing with the shirt tail of the polo shirt I was wearing. It was bunching up around the waist of my pants, and I didn't like the way it felt. When I twisted around trying to see my rear end I felt a tiny prick on my neck, but by the time I spun around to see what it was from I passed out.

When I woke up, I opened my eyes but I couldn't see. Wherever I was didn't have any light. I tried groping around and eventually caught the feel of a wall using my hand to follow along stumbling, despite there being no furniture to trip over. I didn't realize how much my balance was impacted by my ability to see where I was going. Eventually I thought I felt a door and found the knob but when I pulled on it the lock prevented me from escaping.

I raised my hand and kept circling the room looking for a window. Even if it were nighttime I should be able to let in the moonlight for a little help in focusing. I did find a window and was able to determine there were blinds covering it. A little more groping and I got them open, but absolutely no light came in.

It was at that point that the feeling of panic set in. Raoul had me. It wasn't dark in this room, I was blind! He had injected me with the drug he'd made and I couldn't see a thing. Realizing that, I sank to the floor. There was no point in trying to escape because without my eyesight I'd either get recaptured or I'd stumble into a situation even more dangerous than being kept here. With my luck, the place where I was being held was on the edge of a cliff and I'd fall off to the jagged rocks below.

My mind was a whirlwind of bleak possibilities and I could feel tears streaming down my eyes. Did anyone know I'd been kidnapped? I knew now I had been wrong in convincing the guys to allow me a little distance in meeting with Maggie. They wanted someone in the dinner with me but I swore it was safe and that having another person there would keep her from talking. Raoul must have been hiding in the bathroom and carried me out the back where no one from RangeMan would have seen him.

I had no idea what time it was to know how long I'd been gone. I wondered if anyone was even upset about my absence, or if they were pissed that my lack of awareness caused me to be abducted in the first place. I could see some of the guys feeling that way, but in my heart I knew most of them didn't.

I'll bet if they had been told that I'd been kidnapped, Bobby and Lester were upset. A few months back, when Binkie had been shot on the shift Lester was supposed to be working, I was there when the call came to Bobby. When he told us what happened to Binkie, Les was torn apart. Bobby put his hands on either side of Lester's face and held his head perfectly still. As Lester stopped swearing Bobby's thumbs began to stroke him gently, and I watched as Lester found his control once more and he began to think more rationally. I always loved that memory because it was a perfect example of how touch was supposed to soothe the person we love.

Thinking about love drew my mind to Vince, and I wondered how he was taking the news of my kidnapping. In my heart I knew he wouldn't be mad at me. After the night we spent together, my heart was as certain of his feelings as I was that the sun would rise. I remembered him describing me that way, and I smiled despite the hollow ache in my chest. The spot that had felt so full this morning as we made love now yearned to be connected to him once more.

Despite it being hot and humid outside my body began to shiver. I knew wherever I was being held was air-conditioned, but I didn't think it accounted for my chills. I missed Vince and the warmth his presence always gave to me. Staying on the floor, I scooted on my bottom along the wall until I found a corner and then I drew my body into a ball and stayed there, hoping I would be left alone until the drug began to wear off.

I sat in the cool room surrounded by my thoughts of Vince and my panic of what was to become of me. Then I remembered that I probably wasn't in as bad of a position as I thought. I hadn't felt my purse, so no doubt Raoul had taken the liberty of disposing of it for me, but I still had other means of alerting the guys to what was happening. My shirt tail was already untucked, so I ran my hand up and discovered the wire was gone. So much for telling them what was happening. My mind wondered if they'd heard enough after I'd been drugged to realize what had happened, and if someone was on the way to find me.

Not deterred I slipped my hand into the pocket of my shorts and let a short sob out when I realized the panic button was not there. Finally, I ran my hand through my hair and sighed in relief that I still had the scrunchie pulling my hair back into a ponytail. Thank goodness this morning I ran out of time to do anything better with my hair. I knew there was a RangeMan tracker in my accessory, so I pulled myself together knowing that the guys would eventually track that signal and free me. I just had to find a way to keep myself from falling apart between now and the time they arrived.

I had no concept of time, so when the door opened and I heard the sound of footsteps approaching I was unsure how much longer it would be until my vision returned.

Whoever had entered the room stopped a few feet away, a fact that brought me great relief as I couldn't figure out how to make myself any smaller in the corner to escape them. "Stephanie," Raoul's distinctive voice said, "I'm glad you are awake. I have asked Maria, my assistant to attend to you. She will assist you with your hygiene needs, and she will bring you some dinner. She will also call to me if you try to escape. There is a tracker on your ankle similar to the devices criminals on house arrest wear. If you approach any of the outside doors or windows it will sound to alert me and it will produce an electrical charge which will tear through your body painfully. You are being held on the third floor, so trying to escape from a window would mean your certain death."

I didn't reply, which may have been a mistake as I heard him come closer. "You were a horrible delivery person, but you may still be useful so I do not intend any harm to come to you."

I clung to that hope and asked, "Why are you keeping me here?"

"I need a new test subject to try out some of the modifications I am trying to make to my compounds. You see, I know from your conversation with my sister that you now know all about my business and why I do what I do. Despite what you may think of me, I am still trying to figure out how to help my family. The injections they must take several times a day to block their sight are tedious, especially for my nephew. I need to find a way to make the compound stronger without permanently blinding him. So, I will change the parameters gradually and then test it on you." He explained himself as though he were asking me to be a test taster in a kitchen.

"What if you make it too strong?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Then you will be never see your boyfriend's face again. But in exchange for the service you will have provided to me, I might let you go at that point. After all, a blind woman is hardly a threat to me; especially one as clumsy as you." I could hear the smile in his voice, and I hated him at that moment. It was bad enough he was going to use me as a lab rat for his drugs, but to think that he was laughing at my expense was too much. Maggie was right, something in her brother had snapped.

"When should I get my vision back?" I asked, trying to keep him talking so that I would at least know where he was in the room.

"I cannot tell you that," he said in a more sane voice, as though Dr. Jekyll had replaced Mr. Hyde. "I do not want the information to sway your reports to me of how the drug is affecting your system. I need your information to be as honest and accurate as possible. This will be the data I need to know about the dependability of my product. As long as you are capable of working with me, then I will see to it that you are taken care of and safe. But if you lie to me, or try to cross me in some way, you will no longer be useful. Are we clear?"

I nodded that I understood, and reflexively made my body's ball even tighter into the corner.

"Maria!" I jumped when he yelled out for his assistant. "This is Stephanie. She is to be treated as guest in my home, and it is your job to make her comfortable. Call me if she behaves in any way that makes your job more difficult."

"Yes, sir," came a quiet, almost shy response from the woman that he had charged with watching over me.

"Maria is a certified nurse in Columbia, so you can speak freely with her regarding anything you feel. If you experience a head ache, or pressure behind your eyes, there are medications she can provide you to counter those symptoms. But you will need to fully describe what you are experiencing first so that she can document it." He instructed as though I had signed up to be a test subject for a clinical trial. "I will leave you two now, and will remain downstairs unless I am needed."

I heard his footsteps begin to soften, and I knew he had left the room. However, being left with a woman who was his associate wasn't exactly a comfort, even if she was a nurse who had been charged with caring for me.

"Stephanie," a soft voice spoke with a thick accent. "I am going to help you stand, and we will walk through the room to the bathroom across the hall. I'm sure you would like to freshen up, and I can assist you with that." She wasn't being demanding or harsh, and I did feel dirty- as though being unconscious had given someone an opportunity to touch me without my knowledge. Now that she'd suggested it, a shower would feel really good.

"I'm not very steady on my feet," I warned her trying to convey I was not going to be a difficult patient, at least not until after I'd finished doing everything I needed to in the bathroom.

"Are you dizzy?" she asked, proving herself to be very diligent in gathering information.

"No," I replied softly, "Just clumsy, and without my eyesight it's magnified."

"I'm sure we can manage," she encouraged me, and when her hands touched my arm I didn't get a creeped out sensation, so I allowed her to help me stand up and together we made it across the room and to the bathroom. She helped me find the toilet and then ran a warm shower for me. I realized as much as I didn't like the idea of anyone seeing me naked, I needed help getting clean so I swallowed my pride and let her stay in the room with me.

She handed me a washcloth that felt rich with lather, so I assumed it was soaped up for my use. I made good use of it trying to wash away the bad guy cooties from being in Raoul's presence. When I was done, Maria wrapped me in a towel and used a second one to help me dry off. She was gentle, but thorough, and I appreciated her help.

"Thank you," I whispered unsure of the protocol between a kidnapper and a hostage.

"You're welcome," she replied softly. "I will watch over you so you can relax. You are under enough stress already that you don't need to worry about being hurt while you are so vulnerable."

I nodded that I'd heard her, but I didn't reply aloud. Maria explained that I might be more comfortable in a dress so I didn't have to fumble with buttons and zippers. So I allowed her to pull a light summer dress over my head. It had a stretchy fitted top, short sleeves, and a hemline that fell just above my knee. I didn't need to see it to know it was probably a very nice outfit. "What color is it?" I asked. I had no reason to know, I just missed being able to see it for myself.

"It's white with little blue flowers," she described to me.

Then she suggested I allow her to help me with my hair. I could only imagine how it must look, so I pulled the scrunchie out and wrapped it around my wrist. I needed to keep it on me as my only connection to the guys who I hoped were on their way.

She brushed my hair out expertly, rarely pulling it. That was quite a feat, so I complimented her on it as I felt her begin to pull the top into three sections for a French braid. She confessed that she had similar hair and understood how it felt when someone was being too rough in trying to brush it out. I felt like I was living in some sort of strange alter reality. This woman was here to keep me from escaping, yet I liked her. I was allowing her to care for me. In some ways it felt nice to have someone being so tender with me.

As soon as I thought that, I had a stabbing pain my chest. It made me think of Vince and how he had run his fingers through my hair this morning and pulled me to him using my curls as his guide with a tight grip. I loved the way it felt and having my hair touched and pulled away from my neck had made me painfully aware of how much I missed him.

I felt tears running down my face, despite my best efforts to stop them. I felt the distance between us acutely and I missed him from the deepest part of my soul. I wouldn't feel safe again until I was surrounded by his arms.

Maria finished her work and asked if I wanted to use the same hair band. I raised my hands and put the scrunchie on myself, not trusting that she would not take the one I had and replace it with another as a trick. I felt her put a tissue in my hand when I was finished and I wiped my face to clear the tears that seemed to keep falling. My eyes were feeling gritty, and I knew they were most likely irritated from crying so much, so I tried to pull myself together.

Maria took my hand and wrapped it around her arm so that I could hold onto her to guide me back to what I assumed was my room. Placing me on a daybed, she left and returned a few moments later with a turkey sandwich. I wasn't sure if I should accept the meal, but I was hungry and I figured with my current handicap I probably needed to keep all my other senses sharp so I couldn't afford to allow myself to grow too weak.

Once I finished my meal and the bottle of water she provided, I felt a twinge of discomfort behind my right eye. I put my hand against my temple and pressed in, as though the pressure from my hand would stop the throbbing that seemed to be increasing quickly.

"What do you feel?" Maria asked, her voice slightly stern, reminding me despite her gentle nature, she had a job to do.

I tried to describe it but it was quickly getting worse and was now beginning on the left side as well. "I can give you something for the discomfort, but I need to know first if you are gaining any vision. Can you open your eyes?"

I blinked them open, hardly aware that I had been sitting there with them closed. When I did so I was aware of some light filtering in and some blurry movement directly in front of my face, but I had no ability to make out any shapes. I described everything as well as possible and I heard her relaying my comments to someone.

It didn't take very long before fast footsteps were approaching and I knew Raoul had reentered the room. "Stephanie, I am pleased with your report to Maria to know that you are taking this seriously. The pain you are experiencing is a result of the optic nerve being flooded with signals, which it is now attempting to process. Given the state of your vision now, I would say within half an hour you would be virtually back to normal."

Before I could get excited about that prospect the mad scientist continued, "You are exactly on target for the initial dose I gave you, so I know you are responding as predicted to the standard product. That is important as a baseline. Now we are going to begin with the new variations I need to test."

Well crap, just when I began to feel some relief I realize we hadn't even gotten to the dangerous part yet. "I felt Maria's hand on the side of my face, holding me still and a gloved hand touched my neck. The pinch and burn of a needle told me they'd just injected me yet again. "This is a new compound that I hope will produce the result I am after. It was designed to maintain the blindness for an extended period of time without the sedative to cause unconsciousness. I will leave you and Maria now and will return once your vision begins to return once more." Then he began speaking in Spanish and while I picked up a few words, I couldn't understand enough to know what they were talking about.

I did hear him say "una semana," which was very close to "una settimana" in Italian, which meant one week. I knew the two languages were similar, and I wondered if he had just told Maria that I would blind for a week. I pushed that thought away, reminding myself that I was not a language expert while praying that I was wrong about the expected duration of my current blindness.

Raoul left us and I pulled my knees up trying to tuck the bottom of the dress around me to maintain some sense of modesty. On the good news front, as the light began to disappear from my vision, the pain receded as well. If I had to be blind, at least I wasn't in pain.

I shifted to put my head on the edge of the bed and wondered how I would pass the time. Sitting here with nothing to do would quickly drive me crazy. "Would you like me to read to you?" Maria asked tentatively.

"Read?" I asked, as though I didn't understand what she was saying.

"Yes, I love books," she confessed. "I am working on my English still and reading helps me with that. I have just started a new series that I think you will enjoy. Maybe you can help me when I don't understand a word."

I realized this was probably all I could hope for, so I agreed to have a distraction if nothing else. She began reading and the sound of her voice and the plot quickly drew me in and I listened, content to be able to picture things still in mind's eye. I might be blind, but nothing could touch my imagination. It was that thought that threw me off slightly when the book had the heroine being hunted by a group of evil men. I could have sworn she read the words, "And then there was a horrible crash," just before my ears heard that exact sound.

She stopped reading immediately, confusing me even more. "Was that real?" I asked, trying to figure out if I had been dreaming or if we were being invaded from the sound of the gunfire now tearing through the house below us.

"We need to hide," Maria said in a shaky voice. "Come, there is a closet in the hallway."

"Wait," I instructed listening closely for any sign that it might be my guys creating the noise below. I definitely heard, "DEA," but then I heard something much better than the sound of federal agents- a deep bass voice barking orders that I knew without a shadow of a doubt belonged to Tank. "Secure him, then Alpha team break off and find her. We're taking our Little Girl home."

Maria tried once more to pull me to what she thought was the safety of the closet but I put my hands on hers and said, "Stop, the men that just came in are here to save me. I don't need to hide from them."

She spoke so quietly I barely heard her reply, "But I do. They won't understand why I was here."

"Why were you here?" I asked her, needing to understand her level of involvement quickly if I was going to protect her.

"This drug in the wrong hands is a horrible thing, but for the people who suffer without it, this work could have been a miracle." She said with breaks in her voice.

"Who do you know that's sick?" I asked her in a stern tone, trying to keep her from panicking.

"My husband. He suffers terribly. We came to Trenton hoping for a miracle, but because of his age there isn't much that can be done. What Raoul has created gives him relief and if there was a way to extend it I wanted to help with that. I didn't want you to be hurt, but I would do anything to help my husband," she explained with despair breaking in her voice.

I kept my hands on her arms and as the footsteps of heavy combat boots fell on the stairs I prepared myself to defend her. I put my body in front of her to keep anyone from misunderstanding her role and getting trigger happy to free me from my captor. My eyes were open, straining as though I could will them to work and let me know who was heading our way.

"Bomber," I recognized Bobby's voice immediately and felt my face erupting into a smile.

"Bobby!" I replied with great relief.

"Ma'am," his voice spoke again with a harder element to it. "You need to let go of Stephanie and step away."

"No," I quickly interrupted, refusing to let go of Maria. "Someone needs to help Maria. She was here because she was forced to work for Raoul in order to help her husband. You have to be sure nothing happens to her."

"You don't have to do this," Maria whispered.

"Yes, I do," I assured her. "These men are honorable men, and they will see that you are taken home safely. I'm just sorry I can't do more to help your husband."

I could smell Polo and guessed, "Cal?"

"Yea, Bomber?" His voice was right beside me, so I figured he was coming to help Maria home.

"Be sure she gets home safely," I told him. "She tried to take care of me."

"You got it," he assured me, and I could feel his hands touch my arm as he pried Maria's grip from me.

I had nothing to support me now and I felt more lost than ever. I could hear more yelling downstairs and didn't know what was going on. It was too loud to have much clarity, but the pure anger coming up the stairs from it was being communicated loud and clear.

Bobby's voice came through then when he said, "Come on Steph. If we don't get you down to Vince he may hurt somebody trying to get to you himself." He paused before explaining my unasked question, "Tank wouldn't let him be a part of the response team because of how upset he was when we realized you'd been taken from the diner. But Vince refused to be left behind. Apparently, he won't believe that you're alright until he sees you for himself."

I could feel the tears begin to fall at the mention of Vince's name. And then I heard footsteps on the stairs again. Loud, demanding, angry footsteps that stopped near where I thought Bobby's voice was coming from.

"Oh God," Vince's voice rang out as he moved to draw me in his arms. "You can't see can you?" He asked me in my hair, making me wonder if the other guys realized it or not. I guess the way I had been defending Maria and trying to see did give the impression that I was alright. The care she had given me after my shower probably made me seem in good shape.

I shook my head no and clung to him while he rubbed my back with his strong hands, pulling me tightly to him to eliminate any space between us. I couldn't see his face, but I knew exactly what it looked like. I knew it bore equal parts anger and relief. I knew at this moment he wanted nothing more than to rip Raoul from the grasps of the federal agents to make him pay for what I'd been through.

But when he said, "Bella," slowly drawing out both syllables as a whispered prayer, I knew he wouldn't leave my side.


	18. In the Dark

_Janet's characters are below. The only credit I deserve is for taking them and running._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) there aren't words of gratitude great enough to thank you for working as the beta on this story._

**Chapter 18 – In the Dark**

_Vince's POV_

I heard Tank's command that I stay outside until they had secured the area, and like a good soldier I agreed and stood behind the SUV I rode to the house in. But the second I heard gunfire, I stopped being a soldier following orders and I turned into a man on mission. I had to get to Stephanie's side. I don't know why but from the moment I heard the toilet flush in that dinner, I knew something was wrong and the hours that had passed since then had nearly driven me crazy.

If I didn't touch her soon I was going to hurt somebody. I listened as hard as I could through my comm unit and heard Tank give the order to secure someone and then command the Alpha team to break loose to find Stephanie. I began to run from the safety of the parking area to the house, unable to hold back anymore.

There were DEA agents at the front door that thought they could intimidate me by standing shoulder to shoulder to secure the scene. They had no damn idea who they were dealing with. I wasn't going to be denied access to that house. There were only two of them, and while I could hear them shouting at me to stand down, I had plenty to say in return as I fought my way through them and into the den.

Tank turned and saw me. He didn't look pleased, but he had the good sense not to look surprised either. Another DEA agent came toward me but Tank pulled him back, clearing the way for me to go up the stairs. I had to stop to allow Cal to pass by escorting a young woman with dark skin and hair as crazy as Stephanie's. As soon as they cleared by me I continued to make my way up both flights of stairs to the top floor, where we assumed Stephanie was being held.

I could hear Bobby telling Stephanie that he wanted to get her down to me before I created a problem, but I didn't hear her respond. Woody, Junior, and Brett moved to allow me easy access past them. It wasn't until my eyes focused on Stephanie standing a few feet from an open doorway in a light summer dress that I started to relax. Before my body could fully draw in the comfort of seeing her alive I looked at her eyes. They were open, with a trail of tears from each one, but they weren't alive. They were unfocused and completely lost. She couldn't see us. Despite the amount of time that had passed since her kidnapping, she still couldn't see.

I ran to her side, asking if my fear was right and her mute nod of agreement was the only confirmation she gave me. "Bella," I whispered into her hair as a prayer that she would believe I would not abandon her. Despite my burning desire to go rip Raoul's heart from his chest, I couldn't let her go. She needed me and the fires of hell itself couldn't separate me from her at the moment. When I felt her begin to relax slightly I asked her, "Do you want to walk to the car or do you want me to carry you?" I knew she usually appreciated her independence, and I didn't want her to think that because she couldn't see that I was going to take away her control.

She began to cry in earnest at my question, which had me internally swearing that I had done something wrong. I tried to be patient, all the while feeling that my heart was being ripped to shreds by the sound of her suffering. Finally, she pulled herself together enough to tell me, "I'm not very sure on my feet right now."

I lifted her effortlessly, cradling her in my arms. She put her hands around my shoulders, not to help support her weight, but to assure herself that I was there. Tight fists gripped my t-shirt, as though she were afraid I'd disappear if she let go even a little. Her head buried itself in my shoulder and I could feel her trust in me to get her safely to the truck waiting out front.

Bobby looked at her as we approached and I could see his jaw snapping shut. Apparently the fact that she was standing up in the hall had given him the impression that she could see. I could feel the anger coming off of him and as we passed I could have sworn Stephanie tightened up and tried to make herself even smaller in my arms. I was aware of his mood from the look on his face, but it was like without her vision her spidey sense was on high alert and she was getting her emotional clues from within her.

The guys moved ahead of us, clearing the way, and blocking the view of anyone else in the house. I might consider her mine, but I knew any one of those guys would lay down their life for her, and at the moment they were solely focused on protecting her. Like Tank had said before he gave the signal to crash into the house, this bastard had taken something that belonged to us and it was time to bring her home. This was a personal attack and it would be treated as such by every person at RangeMan.

Just before we got to the front door, Hector yelled out for us to stop. I spun around, irritated at the delay in getting Steph out of this place. However, I knew that Hector rarely spoke during a tense time, so if he had something to say it was probably important. As he approached us he pulled a small flat box from a pocket of his cargoes. Inside were small screw drivers and tiny pliers designed to handle the fine detailed electrical jobs he specialized in. He pointed to her ankle and said, "House arrest with a charge."

Shit. If I'd walked out with her she would have received an electrical jolt as a painful punishment. It was like an invisible fencing collar for a dog and the thought of Raoul daring to put it on her sweet skin renewed my desire to see him suffer and die. I knew the DEA wanted him brought to justice, but my version of justice for this wouldn't have involved Raoul living out his days in a cushy jail cell. When Hector finished removing it I noticed he dropped the anklet and rubbed the red mark on her ankle with both of his hands. She offered a weak thank you and I began walking once more.

Ram moved in front and opened the door to the back seat of the Explorer I came in. I told her, "We're at the truck; I'm going to get in the back seat with you." I didn't want the sudden shift in how I was holding her to make her panic in any way.

Ram shut the door and I watched the muscles in his back twitch as every sound and motion drew his attention. I was beyond speech at this moment. Once we were secure I removed my hand from under her legs and slung it around her waist instead. I needed her as close to me as possible until I could get myself under control.

It only took a few minutes before I was able to speak. "I'm so sorry, Stephanie."

She made a soft shushing sound. "This isn't your fault."

"But I knew something was off when you went to the bathroom. I should have moved in then. At the very least I could have gotten to you before he took you away. You could have woken up in my arms instead of being alone and afraid," I tried explaining. Somehow I had managed to screw up the simple task of watching over her again. On my watch she'd been hurt so many times that I was beginning to wonder if she wasn't safer on her own.

"Stop," she interrupted me. "I knew you would come. I knew you wouldn't give up on me and that's all that matters."

"No, what matters is that this whole thing could have been avoided, but instead we let you go into a dinner with no back up on sight in order to capture information for the feds." I corrected her, beginning to feel my temper coming out once more at how she seemed to disregard her own safety so often.

"Vince," my name came out, almost as a curse, and it got my full attention.

"What?" I asked strongly, matching her tone with my own.

He hand moved to my face and her fingers moved until she had them on the edge of my lips. I stayed still, trying to figure out what she was doing. I was so focused on coming up with possibilities of why she might be touching me that I nearly missed it when her head began moving towards mine.

Just as I realized what was happening, her lips slammed on mine and she kissed me. She kissed me with a ferocity that nearly took my breath away. My instincts took over and I matched her intensity with my own, assuring myself that she was alive and well. I allowed the touch and feel of her to reassure my brain that despite the hundreds of images that had been conjured up about how she might be injured, she was in fact, fine. We only broke apart when the doors to the truck opened and the guys started pouring in with us.

Tank and Bobby got in the front seats and Lester got in beside us. As soon as the doors closed Tank started the truck and we were moving. "Where are we going?" Steph asked after we'd been moving only a moment or two.

"Hospital," Tank said through clenched teeth.

"No!" Stephanie practically screamed.

"Steph," Bobby began, "You can't see, and we need to have your eyes assessed given what we know about the compound. You should have your vision back by now and the fact that you don't brings up questions that I can't handle."

"It had come back, or it was beginning to," she said trying to get even closer to me than she already was. "But Raoul decided to use me as a lab rat and he tested a different version of his drug to see if he could block vision for a longer period of time without permanent damage. I think he said something about this one lasting a week, but I don't know that for sure."

"A week!" Bobby turned around in his seat and his eyes were wide in panic. "We definitely need to get you checked out. You shouldn't have to stay, but the doctor will need to examine your eyes, do some blood work, and then make some suggestions about how we should care for your eyes while they aren't functioning properly."

She sank into me again, in a way that spoke of defeat. She hated hospitals, but Bobby's tone made it clear there was no way to get out of this visit.

An hour and a half later the two consulting ophthalmologists that Bobby had called in had run about every test they could and I could tell Steph had been through enough. They were so immersed in the mystery of the drug, and her body's reaction to it, that they were forgetting their bedside manners completely. Les and I were both about to blow and it shocked me when his fuse hit the TNT first. "Alright! That's enough! If the two of you can't warn her before you touch her then get your bloody hands away from her."

"Beautiful, are you ready to go?" He asked.

She nodded her desire to leave. "I'm going to help you stand up, okay?" Les asked her gently, giving her a chance to prepare for his touch.

Once she was on her feet again he took her arm and put it around his own, telling her to take small steps and she'd soon be to the door. I could see she wasn't steady on her feet. She was trying to follow his directions but she didn't understand how to follow where he wanted her go, so every step made blind was causing her panic at the idea of running into something.

"Hey guys," I interrupted their progress, desperate to do something to help her. "Where are we going now?"

Tank, Bobby, and Lester all thought she should be taken to Haywood so that she could have access to help at anytime. "Do you want to come back and stay with me for a while?" I asked her, wanting to be sure she felt like she had some control.

She nodded but didn't speak. I could see how raw this experience was making her. Feeling so dependant and helpless was making it a constant battle just to keep from falling apart. She needed to get away from the prying eyes of so many people in order to deal with this.

I walked closer as I spoke, so she would know I was approaching. "How about we have Les and Bobby go back to your place and pack you a bag? Tank can drive us back to Haywood, and I'll get you settled in my apartment?"

I stopped right next to her at the end of my questions, and she moved her hands to latch onto me. I tried to hide my self-satisfied smirk that she chose to cling to me over Lester when given the chance.

The guys all agreed to the plan, and I positioned her hands on my arm so I could lead her out of the private room we had been given in the ER. She didn't seem to hesitate when I moved, and she followed my lead as though we were dancing. I guess all that time Steph had spent in my arms at the studio, dancing with her eyes shut, had paid off.

We made it to the SUV without incident and were back to the safety of Haywood ten minutes later. We took the elevator up to four and I led her straight to my apartment. I knew Bobby and Lester would be back with a bag for her soon, so I needed to keep her strong until they left.

"Do you need anything? Something to drink or eat?" I was rambling, but I wasn't sure what to do.

"No," she replied, speaking her first word since we left St. Francis.

I saw her expression change and asked what she just thought. Her cheeks took on a lovely shade of red and I wondered why. "I could use help getting to the bathroom," she finally admitted. I smiled at the thought that after having spent last night exploring every inch of her body, she was still embarrassed at the idea of admitting she needed to use the bathroom.

I grabbed her hands with mine. "Come on Bella, we'll figure out how to make this work."

I got her to the bathroom, turned her around, and positioned her directly in front of the toilet putting one hand on the vanity next to it as a reminder of where to find the sink when she was done. "Do you need any help?" I asked, not wanting to crowd her but not knowing what she was capable of handling on her own either.

"I think I can handle it from here. Can I call you when I'm done?" She asked tentatively, with a painful edge of insecurity in her voice.

I cupped her check with my hand and said, "I'll be listening for your voice, Bella."

With that I turned and walked out, shutting the door behind me, insuring it made a sound so she would know she had some privacy. I heard the toilet flush, and then I heard the water of the sink running. It was a small bathroom, so I knew she would be okay feeling her way around to take care of whatever she needed.

The door opened and I watched as she groped around, opening the door and moving to the doorway, but once she cleared the area where there was something to hang onto, she stopped and said my name. Her voice was so small and fragile and I felt a new wave of pain at what she must have endured.

"I'm here," I assured her, forcing myself to keep talking in order to reassure her that despite the darkness she wasn't alone. I wasn't used to chatting constantly, but was willing to be uncomfortable if it meant helping to ease her mind.

I pulled her to the kitchen and lifted her to sit on the counter, intentionally staying away from the couch. I was afraid is she got too comfortable, then everything she'd been through would come rushing back and she might not want to fall apart when the guys brought her suitcase.

I kept her chatting and pulled a few things together for a snack to share. I washed some grapes and then placed a few in her hand so that she could feed herself. As much as I wanted to place the juicy fruit in her mouth, I knew she needed any piece of independence she could have right now.

She ate all the grapes and allowed me to refill her hand a second time. There was a natural sugar in the fruit that I thought would help to keep her energy up for a little while longer. By the time those had disappeared there was a knock at the door. "I'm going to let them in and I'll come right back to you," I told her, watching as the initial panic receded from her face as she trusted my words that I wasn't going to leave her sitting on the cabinet alone for long.

As expected, Bobby and Lester walked in each carrying a small bag. They took the things straight into my bedroom and dropped them on the floor. When they came back to the kitchen I was in front of Stephanie, leaning with my back to her between her legs. Stephanie's arms were around my ribs and her head was turned to the side resting against my shoulder. I couldn't tell if she was hiding from her friends or just seeking comfort, but I didn't feel the need to push it either way.

Bobby approached us first and said, "Bomber, I have some medication in my office in case you begin to get the sensation back in your vision and feel pressure or pain from the sudden onset. I've been warned that the longer your vision is gone, the more painful it may be when it returns. Please don't hesitate to call me if you feel even the smallest twinge of discomfort."

She nodded, but didn't say a thing. It was at that moment that I felt moisture seeping into my shirt from the back. She was silently crying, pressing her face against me to hide it from the guys.

"Thanks for dropping off the clothes, guys," I said in the hope of getting them out before they noticed her current condition. They both looked at me as though I had sprouted a second head. I was being rude, and it was unlike me to try and throw them out. I understood their relationship with Steph and didn't want to get in the way of it, but at the moment she needed something they couldn't give her.

Les took a silent step to the side in order to get a clear view of her face and grimaced. His hand lifted slightly, as though he were going to touch her, but after hesitating for a second he dropped it and said goodbye, reminding me to call him if either of us needed anything.

They saw themselves out and the second the door closed I spun around and crushed her to me tightly. "Bella, che cossa posso fare per voi?" _(What can I do for you?)_

"Si sta gia facendo," _(You're already doing it)_ she assured me.

"Come on," I said lifting her in my arms and taking us to the couch to get comfortable.

I sat down and kept her in my arms so that she was sitting across my lap. Once we stopped moving she began to cry in earnest with big body shaking sobs that threatened to undo me. Eventually, she began to slow down and the sounds reduced enough that I could speak.

"I was scared," I admitted, feeling strange saying the words most guys would never admit to.

"Why?" She asked still hiccupping, trying to get her breathing under control.

"I heard you go to the bathroom in the dinner, and then there was nothing. The longer it went without you making a sound, the more I began to worry. We gave you ninety seconds to make a noise and heard only silence on your line. There were some background sounds, water running, another door opening, but no rustling fabric to indicate you were moving," I tried to take her through the scene as I found it.

I jumped out of the truck, not bothering to wait for Tank to drive us the block and half to get to her. "I was the first one in the bathroom, and I saw your microphone on the floor. I nearly missed it because it's so small, but the tape you used to hold it place was still attached. I handed it to Tank when he entered and pushed past him to try and figure out where you'd been taken. There was a door at the back that opened to the dumpster. When I walked out I saw your panic button lying on the ground next to your purse."

I had to stop to take a few deep breaths to calm down. I was feeling the anger and fear just as fresh now as I had this morning when it first happened. "I knew you were gone, who had you, and I had no idea if we had a way to track you. Tank came out behind me and put a hand on my shoulder, pressing hard enough to help bring me back to the present and out of my panic. He assured me that you still had one active tracker and that Hector was getting a perfect feed on it."

That was all I had to cling to for hope that we would get her back safe. After that we mobilized with practiced efficiency and were in pursuit within an hour. We had to hold off at the house where Raoul was holding her in order to wait for the DEA agents who wanted to arrest him because of the evidence they finally had, thanks to Stephanie's tireless work and sacrifice.

"You didn't give up on me," she summed up with her voice beginning to sound more steady.

"Mai!" I told her before translating it, "Never!" I placed a kiss on her head and let my lips stay there, taking a deep breath to draw in her scent.

She began to talk then, telling me about her abduction and how little she remembered after a pinch in her neck. She went on to detail her conversation with Raoul, and Maria's gentle care for her. I could see her relax when she mentioned Maria and made a mental note to find a way to do something to thank her for her kindness to Steph during the brief time they were together.

"I knew you would come, but I was scared that Raoul might get impatient and do something foolish that would take my vision forever," she began before admitting the fear that I held too. "What if my eyes don't recover? What if I'm really blind?"

I kissed her again and then tried to assure her, "Then we will figure out how to set up our home so that you are comfortable and happy."

Then she pulled back slightly, with a furrow on her brow warning me that whatever she was about to say probably wasn't going to make me happy. "Vince, you don't want to tie yourself down to a woman who might need constant help."

I refused to allow that thought to take hold in her mind. We'd spent so much time over the last few weeks fighting how we felt for each other that I refused to give her a chance to throw it all away. "Stop!" I interrupted her abruptly. "I wouldn't see it as being tied down. We are already bonded to each other so tightly I can't imagine a day without you. Whether you can see or not makes no difference in how I feel about you. I would see the time I spent with you to be the greatest kind of privilege."

She didn't seem convinced and I realized where this woman was concerned there was nothing I wouldn't do. "Please," I found myself begging for what was probably the first time in my life. "Please don't shut me out now. After the hours this afternoon when I didn't know what was going to happen, I need to be close to you. Please don't put the walls back up."

Her body relaxed slightly and I knew I was getting through to her. "Per favore," I continued to plead, no longer worried about my pride. I'd lay myself at her feet with no shame if I thought it would keep her from putting distance between us right now.

Her hand moved from her lap to connect with my abs. I stilled, waiting to see what she was going to do as that small hand began to travel up my chest, over my collarbone, and up my neck to find my face. Once she had both hands on my face she moved to bring her lips up to mine, "Okay," she whispered before kissing me softly. It was like she was testing the water to find out how it would feel to be this close to me without being able to see.

I tried to hold back to allow her to take what she needed, but when her tongue glided across my lips something in me snapped and my arms tightened, shifting her so that she was straddling my lap. Once I had her settled I pressed my lips to her, greedily taking comfort in the closeness between us. My body was screaming out for her, and it felt like trying to hold a freight train back. I knew she had been through more than what she had shared with me and having a boyfriend who was suddenly thinking of nothing but connecting with her sexually wasn't right.

I had to pull my lips away from hers because it was taking away my ability to think clearly. She made a sound of displeasure and tried to advance on my retreat. "No," she complained, "I need this. I need to feel the connection again like we had this morning. When I was alone in that room and thought of you, my chest ached and felt so empty. I need you to take that ache away and fill me again. Please, Vince, I need this."

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who was willing to beg for what they needed at this moment. Unable to deny her I stood, holding her to me and took us to the bedroom. I didn't bother to turn on any lights wanting to experience tonight in the same way she was. Without the ability to see her clearly, my hands did more roaming and the touching between us was constant with a hint of urgency to keep the connection while trying to get rid of the clothes between us. Once we were finally settled skin on skin, I began to feel the tightness in my chest from this morning dissipate.

I tried to move down her body to take my time in loving her, wanting to be sure she understood how adored she was. But as I tried to work my way she grabbed me desperately and whispered, "No, not now." I moved back up to be sure I was hearing her correctly. "I need the connection now…please." I knew what she meant. As much as I loved pleasuring her, my body was crying out to be buried deep within her. Not to skip to an orgasm, but to eliminate any space between our bodies, between my soul and hers.

I held my weight with my arms and positioned my head at her opening. She angled her hips forward trying to draw me in her. I slowly pushed forward sucking in a breath to regain some control when I felt how wet and burning hot she was. It was like experiencing this for the first time all over again. It took everything I had not to slam forward once my head was in her, but I managed to keep just enough command to hold back and keep it slow and gentle.

I stilled as soon as I felt my body pressed fully against hers, knowing I couldn't get any closer. Warmth began to spread across my chest and my body relaxed accepting that my Stephanie was okay. She was with me once again and I was going to hold her to me as long as possible. She let out a long sigh and said, "The ache is gone." I knew exactly what she meant.

I loved her slowly and completely, filling my senses with her and drawing her more and more into my heart and soul. When our bodies were spent we still felt the need to maintain a connection and when she cuddled up next to my side, I found myself pulling her to lie on top of me so that I could feel all of her. She didn't say a word, but the sound that she made cleared my conscience of any guilt for moving her without asking first.

The next morning I was surprised to see her still on top of me. Of course, the fact that my arms were tight bands around her probably kept her from moving at all during the night. I loosened my grip and began to run my hands along her spine, loving the feel of her soft skin under my fingers.

She started to stir and eventually made a sound that might have meant good morning. "You ready for another day?" I asked her, trying to sound upbeat. I hoped that during the night the drugs had worn off and she was able to see, but I wouldn't allow myself to admit to that wish.

She nodded and slid to the side to lie next to me. "Shit," she swore in such a soft, shy sounding voice that the curse was almost comical. "I still can't see," she admitted telling me she'd held the same hope I had for her overnight recovery.

I tried to offer some comfort as I assured her, "We weren't expecting you to. You said this compound was created to suspend your vision for a week, so it's way too soon for any improvement."

"I know," she said with a slight break in her voice. "But I still hoped."

"I know," I assured her trying to be sure she understood I felt the same way.

"How about a shower?" I offered. "I haven't had a chance to show you how good I am in the water," I tried teasing her.

She started getting up on her own, so I hopped out of my side of the bed and walked around to her. Placing her hands on my forearm I led us to the bathroom, giving her a few minutes of privacy before returning to adjust the shower. Satisfied it was alright for us, I lifted her in my arms and placed her in the shower before following her under the water. I took my time getting her clean and smiled when she snatched the washcloth to return the favor. Without her vision she used one hand on my skin and followed it with the soapy cloth getting me much cleaner than I usually managed on my own.

It was a small thing, but I smiled at the way she was allowing me to care for her and then turning the tables and caring for me in return. In my heart I felt like her vision would return and she would be fine, but until then I was happy to know the time we'd spent on this assignment had not only helped us solve a case, but taught us both how to let down our guard and trust again.


	19. Language Lessons

_JE's creations and characters are depicted below. I'm merely borrowing from her genius._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234), speaking of genius…thank you so much for your wonderful work as the beta on this story. _

**Chapter 19 – Language Lessons**

_Stephanie's POV_

I hate to wait. I'd never been known for my patience, even when I had the ability to distract myself by watching television or surfing the web. But without my vision neither of those were working for me, so I felt as though all I was able to do was sit and wait. I hate to wait.

I heard a key in the door, so I knew Vince was about to enter. "Hey, Bella," his voice called out as soon as the door opened. He always announced himself from the second he entered the apartment. I'd never told him to, but I really appreciated the way he did things like that to keep me from worrying about who was looking at me. I followed the sound of his footsteps and could tell he was grabbing something from the fridge. The swishing sound of a bottle of coke being opened had me betting I was about to be offered a drink, as we usually shared the short bottle between us.

A few steps later I felt the cushion next to me move and then his voice asking, "Do you want some Coke?"

I couldn't stop the smile from breaking out across my face. "I knew you were going to say that," I explained, feeling a little more confident in my ability to process auditory clues to keep from feeling so lost. I held out my hand and gripped the cold bottle when he placed it against my palm. After taking a long sip I held it out until he took it back. Being with Vince was easy, comfortable almost. Even without my vision our relationship didn't seem to be that greatly impacted. I couldn't help but wonder how lost I would feel right now if I hadn't let Vince in before this happened. It was the trust between us that was keeping me sane.

I felt his hand toying with my hair and instinctually leaned into it. He made a contented humming sound and my smile grew a little. We sat that way for a few minutes before I asked, "Are you going to take a shower now?" I knew he'd just finished his workout after sleeping a little later this morning. He pulled a late shift last night and I'd kept him up for at least another hour or so when he returned getting in a workout of my own. When he woke up this morning he told me to sleep some more, but I couldn't, so I got up and managed to get myself pulled together alone. It might not sound like a big deal, but I was feeling very proud of the accomplishment. I wasn't wearing any make-up and I could only do a ponytail, but at least I had shaved and showered and dressed myself in a pair of denim shorts and a scoop neck t-shirt. I had no idea what color it was, but I figured it had to go with the jeans so I was safe.

"You need anything?" Vince asked before standing to get ready. I shook my head no and listened as he moved to the bathroom and shut the door.

No sooner had he disappeared than I heard the sound of someone picking the lock to the apartment. Great, it looked like today was going to be another day when the guys weren't going to leave me alone. I loved them, and I truly appreciated the way they were trying to check on me, but they were hovering and it was making me uncomfortable. I couldn't say anything because I knew they were worried about me, but I still wished they wouldn't just barge in and stay.

I waited for the mystery guest to announce himself. I could barely hear footsteps and then just a few feet to my left came Cal's voice, "Hey Steph, it's Cal." Despite knowing he was coming I still jumped when he spoke.

We talked for a few minutes and then I heard the door opening again. Les and Bobby announced themselves from the door and barged in to sit on either side of me on the couch. I wasn't sure where Cal was as Les and Bobby were monopolizing the conversation, telling me about their take down last night. It was an interesting story, but they were almost overwhelming in their excitement to share it.

I jumped when I heard Hector's voice, as I didn't recall the door opening. Of course, if there was anybody at RangeMan that could sneak in without being detected it was definitely him. "Hola, Chica," he said and then there was a kiss on my head. I was getting better at hiding my reactions to their affection. I loved it when they were sweet, but if I didn't know they were coming it often scared me and I'd flinch or jump. I was constantly on edge that I would hurt someone's feelings by reacting poorly to their attempt at friendliness.

If he noticed he didn't say anything as he jumped into the conversation happening around me, but not really including me. I zoned out, grateful to now have the ability to retreat into myself and tried to listen for Vince. I knew the shower was off, and I thought I heard the bathroom door open. I wondered how he felt about coming out to a living room full of people that hadn't been here when he left.

There were sounds in the kitchen and I wondered who was making themselves at home. When I smelled the freshly applied aftershave I knew Vince was in the room and close by, so I relaxed a little. But when Junior's voice cut through all the other noise to announce he was going to get pizza, I frowned unsure how I'd missed him coming in. He definitely wasn't known for his stealth.

Then a set of lips touched on my forehead that I knew they didn't belong to Bobby, Lester, or Vince, so I jumped despite my best efforts to hold it back. I was quickly working myself up into some sort of panic attack at the thought of being surrounded by more people than I could catalogue, and every time one of them touched me I felt like I was being surprised, no matter how gentle they were being.

That's when a loud, definitely angry voice sounded from a few feet away, directly in front of me. "That's it, everybody except you two are out of here." Who were the two he was keeping? The couch didn't move so I assumed it was Les and Bobby, who I was fairly certain were still flanking me.

A voice I couldn't quite place, Ram maybe, complained, "Man, you're ruining the fun. We were just about to get a real party started."

"Great, have it in your own apartment," Vince bit out.

There were additional mumblings, but I could hear the voices funneling out of the room and the door eventually closed.

"Are you alright, Stephanie?" Vince asked, his voice getting closer with every word. I knew he was kneeling on the floor in front of me, so when he took my hand in his I wasn't at all surprised.

Bobby jumped in, "What's wrong, Bomber? I thought you were going to call me if you started to hurt." He had obviously misunderstood Vince's question.

"I'm fine," I assured him, trying to get a handle on the feeling of being so overwhelmed from all the guests.

Luckily Vince jumped in to explain. "When the guys all come barreling in, it's overwhelming, especially when you prop the door open and people enter without the signal of noise to alert her someone has entered." Well that explained how so many people got in that I wasn't aware of.

"They are just trying to help pass the time," Bobby defended them, but he didn't have much heat in his voice telling me he wasn't too pleased with the impromptu party either.

"It's not that, it's the loss of control. If she can't hear them enter and they walk quietly and touch her, then it's frightening to know someone has just snuck up you. She flinches every time somebody does that, and I could see the panic building on her face, despite her best effort to stop it." I didn't realize I had been so transparent. I guess my poker face wasn't as good as I thought it was.

"You were covering it fine, but I'm getting better at reading your version of a blank face," he added a little closer now so that his arms were resting on my thighs. I relaxed, feeling how close he was to me and knowing no one would dare to touch me with Vince in my space.

"Why didn't you tell us it was bothering you?" Lester asked quietly from my left side.

"I didn't want to upset the guys because I knew they were just trying to help. They don't need to have any more evidence about what a fruitcake I am," I responded, getting three quick growls of disagreement in return.

A few seconds passed before Bobby cleared his throat and slipped into medic mode. "How about I check your eyes and then we'll get out of your hair too?"

Vince squeezed my thigh gently telling me he was going to back away to give Bobby room to work. I felt Lester get up as well and their footsteps went into the kitchen.

Bobby began talking his way through his exam, warning me before he did anything. He lifted my lids, checked for the moisture in my eyes to be sure they weren't getting too dry, and he used some kind of special lens to look beyond the surface to check for any changes. "Everything still looks good," he assured me while pushing my head back and adding some drops to keep my eyes moist. Without any signals along the optic nerve I wasn't blinking as much as I needed to, and my eyes were drying out. Bobby had convinced me wear a sleep mask for a few hours each day to keep my eyes shut in order to prevent any damage from them drying out. Right now, having to use artificial tears was the least of my worries.

"Will you be able to tell if there are any changes to allow me to see again?" I asked, trying to keep the desperation out of my voice.

I felt Bobby's breath against my face, letting me know he was really close to my side. "Probably not," he admitted and I felt my shoulders fall a little. "It's only been five days, so you probably have a little longer to wait," he reminded me. I leaned a little toward him as an invitation, and Bobby's arm went around me pulling me to his side.

"It's so hard to wait," I confessed softly, not wanting to sound like I was complaining.

"I know, Steph, I know," he assured me. We sat together for a few minutes before footsteps announced the reappearance of our friends.

"Hey," Lester said in joking offense. "Why does he get to hold you and I don't?"

I laughed and kidded in return, "Because he was here and you got up and left."

"Well, both of you are leaving," Vince cut in, "Because Steph and I have some packing to do."

"Packing?" I asked, completely distracted from my brief pity party. "What are we packing?"

I could hear the smile in Vince's voice. "I've got a few days off, and you and I are going to take a drive up to the guys' lake house and spend some time there."

That sounded like a wonderful idea. As much as I loved the guys at Haywood, and I knew they meant well, I needed to get away from their constant hovering. "Are you coming too?" I asked tilting my head up in the direction of Bobby.

"No, Bomber, we're going to let you guys have a day or so alone, and then we'll join you," he explained before adding, "Some of us have to keep working."

I whipped my head back to the direction I thought Vince was standing and asked, "Why aren't you working? You aren't taking time off because of me, are you?" I didn't want him changing his life just to accommodate my lack of sight.

"Relax Bella," he assured me. "I had to finish out the week through last night because of some files Brett and I had been working on, but now that I'm done. I had some time given to me because of the completion of our assignment. Because it was classified as a twenty-four hour seven day job, we both have time off due, now that the case is completely closed."

When he explained it like that I couldn't wait to go. "So why are we sitting here, don't we have some packing to do?"

All the guys laughed and Bobby helped me to stand up, putting my hand on Vince's arm. Ironically, Vince was the only person that I could walk with as a guide without feeling afraid that I was going to trip or run into something. I knew none of the guys would ever intentionally allow harm to come to me, but when Vince led me it felt natural and I melted into the trust I had in him.

The guys said goodbye and Vince led me to the bedroom, having me sit on the bed while he began grabbing clothes and putting them into a bag. "Do you want any help?" I asked, unsure of what I could do.

"No," he replied with a strange tone. "I like the idea of picking out what you're going to wear without you being able to veto it."

"You know I keep bikinis in my room at the lake house," I teased him back before adding, "So you need to be sure to pack me something other than skimpy clothes."

"I've got you covered," he assured me much more seriously. He slipped into the bathroom and grabbed some things to add to the growing pile on the bed. I wondered if he was making extra noise for my benefit, or if I was just more in tune to it now and he'd always been this noisy.

I wasn't sure how long it took, but I guessed that half an hour later he announced we were clear to go. I gladly allowed him to lead me to bathroom for a final visit before we left for a few days.

The trip went quickly, but the loud music we occasionally turned down to talk probably had a lot to do with it. Vince rolled the windows partly down and let in some fresh air, giving me a feeling of real freedom. It was still eighty degrees, but it wasn't very humid and I felt so exhilarated to be out of the building. I had no idea how stir crazy I'd gotten being stuck in the apartment over the last few days.

When the truck came to a stop I waited for Vince to come around to my side and open my door. I turned to him and he wrapped his hands around my waist, guiding me to the ground from my seat. When he didn't move to get us in the cabin I knew there was something he wanted to say so I waited. Finally my patience paid off when he asked, "When your vision is back and you don't need my help, will you still let me open your doors and help you down?"

I smiled at the sincerity of his question and the unwavering hope he seemed to hold that my vision would be returning soon. "I don't know," I answered him honestly. "But if I begin to open my own doors for a while I'm sure we can come up with something else for you to do to be able to wrap your arms around me with good cause."

"I'm holding you to that, Bella," he responded happily. With my hands on his arm he guided us to the house and opened the front door.

I stopped walking as soon as we stepped inside. "What's wrong, Steph?" Vince asked, jumping to the wrong conclusion.

I shook my head, "Nothing, it just feels weird to be able to walk in without having to get the interrogation at the door about being completely honest and not blabbing about anything that happens here."

"I didn't see the point since we are always honest with each other, and if you want to talk about what we're going to be doing here, then it's fine by me. Just be sure to make me sound good," he teased before kissing my hand and replacing it on his arm to move me to the kitchen.

"Where do you want to be while I'm bringing in the stuff?" He asked.

"I can hang out here," I assured him, reaching out for a stool and feeling one in front of me. "But how much stuff do you need to bring in? I thought you only packed one bag for us to share."

"That was our luggage, but Ella put some food in the back of the truck, so I should put it away," he informed me jumping into the work that needed to be done.

I didn't realize our trip had been planned out that well. I thought this was a spontaneous vacation in response to my trouble in the apartment. The idea that he'd been planning this as a surprise warmed me and made me want to tell him to forget the food. I wanted to take advantage of the fact that we were alone in a secure house and unlikely to be interrupted for over twenty-four hours. What he had packed for me to wear was no longer important, because the idea of not having any clothing was sounding pretty good at the moment.

After a leisure lunch at the island in the kitchen, Vince pulled me back to my room insisting that I allow him to change my clothes so we could go for a swim while the sun was bright and it was toasty warm outside. Despite my best efforts to interrupt his plan, he stayed on task and got my clothes off before replacing them with my blue bikini. I never remembered having to adjust it as much as he did, but I was giving him the benefit of the doubt that all the rubbing and stroking was necessary to make it lay correctly and wasn't an attempt to tease me mercilessly.

He led me out to the dock and sat me in a chair while he pulled some things from the bag he brought out with us. "Do you want to swim?" he asked, knowing how much I loved being in the water.

I wanted to, but I knew how strange it felt to walk without my vision and imagined that swimming without an internal compass of some sort would be even more frightening. There would be nothing to keep my bearings. Before I could say no Vince spoke up once more. "How about you climb into the water from the ladder, then you grip my shoulders and I swim us out to the floating dock. You can stretch out and get some sun if you want to, or we can stay in the water for a while."

"I'll try it," I said, wanting to feel the water, but still unsure of how it would feel to be away from the dock with nothing to hold onto to.

Vince took both my hands in his and backed up to get me to the edge, then he spun around and had me grab onto his shoulders piggy back style. "How do you feel about holding on while we jump in instead of using the ladder?"

I hesitated, so he pushed it a little and asked, "Trust me?"

"Go for it," I replied without a pause. I did trust him and I loved jumping in the lake so much better than the slow entry of steps.

He gripped my hands to keep me on his back and then counted to three before diving us into the water. I shut my eyes out of habit and felt myself kicking with him to bring us back to the surface. Once we came up on top he moved us through the water effortlessly. I felt us stop and knew we were at the floating dock. "Do you want to get out yet, or do you want to stay in the water for a bit?"

"The water, if you have the energy for it," I told him honestly, feeling him start swimming once more. I was having a great time. I was in the water, my hands were on Vince's hard body, and no one was here to surprise or bother me. It was like Heaven. We talked, and eventually climbed out to lay out a bit before jumping back in for a little more fish time.

Entirely too soon Vince announced it was time for dinner and that we probably needed to get out and get cleaned up before seeing what Ella packed for us.

I didn't really want to get out of the water because for the first time in a few days I hadn't felt board, anxious, or lost. As Vince was helping me get dressed after our shower I asked what the plans were for the evening.

"Well, we're going to eat and then once we feel up to it, I'm going to move a few pieces of furniture in the den, turn up some music on the stereo, and we are going to dance," he said as though this had been in his mind all afternoon.

"I can't dance," I said disappointed at my confession because I would have loved to spend the time in his arms.

"Of course you can dance," he disagreed calmly.

I couldn't glare, but I knew my face was letting him know I was perfectly capable of understanding my own restrictions. "How am I supposed to dance if I don't know where the walls or furniture are?"

"I thought it was my job to lead you," he snapped. "You never had trouble following my lead with your eyes closed at Maggie's. What's the difference now?"

I wanted to say something smart and point out the obvious flaw in his thinking, but I couldn't come up with a single clever argument. Finally I just accepted defeat and said, "Damn, I guess you got me there."

Vince busted out in laughter. His hand was on my shoulder but I could feel him shaking and doubling over. The sound was music to me and I couldn't stop the smile from coming across my face.

Vince played interior designer, moving the furniture out of the way before we ate a lovely dinner of lasagna, which Vince reheated according to Ella's directions. I kept asking, "Is it ready yet?" knowing it would take a while. Finally he got something long and round out of the refrigerator and put it in my hand. "What is this?" I asked unsure.

"It's a whole carrot," he explained. "When you finish it, the lasagna will be finished. I wrinkled up my nose, knowing there was absolutely no way I was going to eat an entire carrot. I guess that was the point. He knew it would take me a while to admit defeat and that would stop me from bugging him.

We ate dinner together on the deck with Vince feeding us both from a single plate. Once we finished, we sat together for a while before Vince changed the grip of his hand on mine to allow my fingers to sit lightly across his palm. Then he asked, "Ms. Plum, may I have this dance?"

I accepted his invitation and allowed him to lead us back into the den where he turned up the music so we could rumba. The last time we did this dance together I was so hot and bothered by the end, I didn't think there was enough cool water in Trenton to ever calm me down. That was before I knew what kind of moves he had off the dance floor. As soon as his hips began to move with mine I realized this time there was no hope for me. I was going to resist as long as possible, but I had a feeling before this night was over, we going to end up dancing right out of our clothes.

It took a waltz, two tangos, a rumba, and a few night club bump and grind numbers before the clothes began to fly, but eventually it happened. We probably made quite a picture sprawled out on the floor- covered in a fine sheen of perspiration and breathing heavy, still clinging to each other, unwilling to allow even a degree of separation.

Vince got his voice back first, but I smiled when he sounded a little raspy, as though screaming my name had robbed some of his voice. "Let's go to the end of the dock to split that pint of Phish Food in the freezer." I nodded, assuming my voice might be completely gone since I had to have done at least four times as much screaming as he had. I felt Vince pull a shirt over my head that fell over my thighs. I assumed it was his from the size and the scent. He took my hand and I followed him out into the night. It was so peaceful as we talked and ate, with me leaning against his chest sitting between his legs in the same reclining deck chair we spent the night in the last time we were here.

Once the dessert was finished I thanked him and nestled tighter against him as he pulled me closer, wrapping both arms around me. I moved one of my arms up behind my head in order to touch him. When he made a contented sound, I sighed in response. I ran my hand through his hair and traced his ear, down his jaw to his chin.

Then I got an idea and I moved back to his hair. "How do you say, 'I love your hair' in Italian?"

"Lo amo i capelli," he responded. I repeated it back to him, trying to hold the words in my head.

Then I moved my hand back down to his neck and asked, "How about, 'I love your neck'?"

His lower sexy voice came out in his response, "Amo il collo."

I twisted so that my lips could reach his neck and as I trailed kissed on the parts I could reach, I repeated the words against his skin.

He growled, making a sound that I interpreted as his appreciation for what I was doing. That only encouraged me to asked, "How about, 'I love touching you'?"

With no delay he replied, "Amo toccare si."

My hands began to trace the lines of his chest, whispering my appreciation in Italian. I wasn't sure what was accounting for my sudden boldness, especially after what we had just done in the house, but I pushed once more and asked, "How do you say, 'I want to make love to you under the stars'?"

He drew in a sudden breath, but his bedroom voice instructed, "Voglio fare l'amore a voi sotto le stelle."

My hands continued to rub over his chest as I repeated his words perfectly, stating what I wanted to do. He interrupted me to say, "Baciami."

Then his lips pressed to mine. When he pulled back I asked, "What does baciami mean?"

He kissed me once more, deeply pushing his tongue into my mouth, sharing my breath as we poured our hearts into the single point of connection. Slightly out of breath when we stopped, he whispered, "It means kiss me."

I nodded my head that I understood and took a few slow breaths through my nose, trying to calm down before framing his face with my hands and slowly tempting him by repeating it once more, "Baciami Bello."

That was the end of my lesson in Italian. His lips connected with mine and for the next hour both our mouths were much too busy to continue my instruction. I knew French was called the language of love, but after only one session, I was pretty sure Italian should be called the language of passion.

The crickets were singing and there was the faint sound of a plane in the sky as I drifted off to sleep- happy, stated, exhausted, and loved.


	20. Getting Warmer

_Thank you JE for giving us the wonderful characters below._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) I can't thank you enough for working so tirelessly as the beta on this story._

**Chapter 20 – Getting Warmer**

_Vince's POV_

"More," Steph whispered against my ear, running her tongue slowly along the outer edge.

"Piu," I translated the word with my mind suddenly blank on what else I could possibly teach her. During the night Steph and I had awakened and come back inside to her bedroom and had a few Italian language lessons where she asked to be taught how to say the most sensual things. It turns out I like teaching and she is a very capable student, not forgetting a single verb. The problem now is that I'm exhausted and almost unable to keep up with her desire to learn more and her energy to act them all out.

When she wiggled her hips again I realized I might not be as exhausted as I first thought. Before I could move past that thought my cell phone on the nightstand began to ring and I begrudgingly answered it. "Yo," I said, surprised at how tired my voice sounded.

There was laughter on the other end. "Man you sound like shit," came Bobby's voice. "I thought you were going to lake to rest."

"That may have been the plan, but I don't know how much rest has happened," I said rubbing my eyes with my other hand. Steph had snuggled up to my side in our typical sleeping position, and I kissed her head while listening to Bobby ask if he and Lester could come out for the day. He ended his sales pitch by saying, "I don't know when Steph is going to get her vision back, but it could be any day now, and I'm worried that it's going to be accompanied with a lot of pain. I want the two of you to have some time without interruption, but I'm afraid of being too far away if she needs help handling what may happen."

I agreed with him completely, so I told him to come on out. Besides, I was in serious need of a few hours off before I could take advantage of our time away from Haywood again. Having the excuse of the guys coming might give me a graceful way to do that without having to admit to being tired.

Bobby said they would be up in a couple of hours and they'd let themselves in and go straight to the lake, so we didn't have to worry about them snooping. If anyone else had said it I wouldn't have believed it, but I trusted these two guys and knew they'd never to anything to hurt Stephanie. After I hung up and told her they were going to join us, I didn't make any moves to get up and get us dressed.

I wrapped my arms around her and shut my eyes, hoping for just a little more rest. We must have fallen asleep that way because the next time I woke up it was close to noon and she was completely limp by my side. I couldn't help but reach out and touch her crazy hair, brushing it away from her face so I could watch her sleeping. She was so beautiful. Watching her with her defenses down like this, replaying the incredible night we spent together, I was aware of my chest tightening.

What if she didn't get her sight back? I knew it would make no difference in how I felt about her, if anything it would probably make me even more protective, but I couldn't imagine it being physically possible to love her any deeper than I did already.

I touched her full lips and smiled at the memory of some of the things they were doing last night. The only evidence of how gifted she was at making me yell her name was the slight swelling of them. They were so red and luscious. Shit, I was sick man, if just watching her sleep was beginning to get a rise out of me. Hell, I shouldn't even be able to walk today, much less be able to get it up again. I'd never had a woman get a reaction out of me like this.

But then again, Stephanie wasn't just any woman. She was an incredible blending of passion and determination over softness and compassion. She was every bit bad ass woman and Italian firecracker. I bit my lip to stop the memory of her mouth forming all those Italian words. Hearing a woman ask you suck on her breast and not stop was always a thrill, but hearing it Italian put her in serious danger of me sucking the nipple right off.

I liked to be in control in my life, and being in a bed with a woman was usually no exception, but I found myself doing her bidding without thinking twice. Hell I don't think a dog has ever been trained to respond to commands as fast as I was last night. She knew what she liked, and she wasn't the least bit shy in sharing that information. God help me that confidence was a turn on; I was a goner.

I felt her begin to wake before it registered on her face. She made a grumbling sound and then complained, "You can just settle that back down, I can't even walk right now. There's no way you're getting close enough to do whatever it is you're thinking about."

I couldn't help but laugh out loud at her complaint. I didn't hear any fire in her voice and knew if I pushed it I could be buried so deeply inside her that neither of us would remember how tired we thought we were. Yet, I didn't want to do that. Well, I _did_ want to, but I wasn't _going_ to.

"Relax, Bella," I assured her. "I was actually thinking more along the lines of us rinsing off and maybe taking a little swim since Les and Bobby are most likely at the dock by now."

She let out a long breath and then asked, "Can I ride on your back?"

I chuckled, "In the water?"

"That too, but I meant to get to the water. I'm not sure I can walk that far." She confessed with a lazy stretch.

She grimaced mid way through her normal routine of waking up and I asked what was wrong. "I'm sore," she admitted with a lovely blush creeping onto her face once more.

I told her not to worry; a little time in the lake would help with that. "How about we skip the shower, and go straight for the lake then?" She suggested.

I got my trunks on first before pulling the sheet back exposing Steph's naked body to my gaze once more. There were little love marks all over her. I didn't remember sucking that hard, that often, but the proof on her beautiful skin was pretty clear. "Mio Dio," (_my God_) I whispered, worried about how the guys would react to seeing the evidence of our night together.

I knew I needed to warn her, but I didn't know how to come out and say 'you can't wear a bikini with nothing over it because I have no control at all and your body has a scattering of hickeys all over it, giving you the appearance of being polka-dotted'. I decided to go with a more subtle, "Bella, I think I got a little carried away last night."

Her brow wrinkled in the cutest way, "No, you got a lot carried away last night, which is why you have to carry me to the dock."

"True, but during the time of me being a lot carried away I may have marked you a few times, and those spots are going to be visible if you go out there in one of your skimpy bikinis," I told her, bracing myself for her to get upset.

"How many are there?" She asked with curiosity being the most prominent emotion in her voice.

I made a quick estimate, "Ten…maybe fifteen."

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You'd think I would have felt that." She still seemed fine when she sat up and instructed me, "I think there's a one piece in the dresser from the first time I was here when it was warm. We'll try that. Anything that the suit doesn't cover will just have to be on display."

"What about Lester?" I asked, not wanting to catch any shit about it.

"If Lester wants a hickey he'll need to talk to Bobby about it. He can't have any of mine," she responded with a smile. If she was relaxed enough to make a joke like that then I knew she was alright.

Twenty minutes later we were ready to go. I'd snuck out and gotten us some yogurt and bananas from the kitchen for a quick snack while she was trying to brush her hair out. When we were done, she hopped up on my back and I carried her outside. As we approached where Bobby and Lester were sitting side by side with their feet in the water, I asked if she wanted me to just jump in like yesterday and she was definitely game.

Without a word I increased my speed and leapt from the end of the pier, right next to where the guys were sitting. We were nearly a third of the way to the floating dock when we resurfaced and swam the distance easily. I heard Bobby and Lester hit the water after us and we all climbed out on the dock in the center of the lake a few minutes later.

Steph was right next to me with our arms and thighs touching as we all talked and laughed. "Thank you for letting us use your cabin last night," Steph said when the conversation died down.

"It was our pleasure Beautiful," Lester said before adding, "But you're going to have to tell us what kind of crazy shit you guys were doing 'cause the whole den was out of whack when we got here. The furniture was against the wall…how much room did you need?"

"We were dancing!" She defended us quickly.

"Even dirty dancing don't take that kind of room," he replied with humor in his voice.

She was blushing and laughing hard along with him, which made the sudden shift in her face so much more striking.

"Bella?" I asked the second her smile began to fade. Her hand went up to her temple and her fingers tips turned white from the amount of pressure she was applying. "What's wrong?"

"My head hurts," she said through clenched teeth. Then the other hand let go of mine and flew up to the other temple. "Bad."

"Bobby?" I asked, hoping to hell he had something hidden in his swim trunks to take the pain away.

"We've got to get her back to the cabin," he instructed me, diving in to rush back to the house to gather his supplies.

"We've got to swim back Steph, can you hold on?" I asked. She nodded bravely, and my heart ached for the suffering she was obviously enduring. I knew it was a mistake to take her out of that house last week without ripping Raoul's heart out.

I swam as smoothly as possible, and Lester helped me get her out of the water, but by the time we were heading in she stopped walking and began to collapse. "It's worse," she whispered making little whimpering sounds as I lifted her into my arms and carried her as quickly as possible to the house.

Bobby had a large blanket thrown over the couch and motioned for me to lay her down on it. I told her what I was doing but when I tried to pull my arms away she shook her head no and pleaded, "Don't go."

I looked at Bobby and he offered, "Sit on the couch and pull her head into your lap. That way she'll have help being still, and she'll know exactly where you are."

I did as he suggested, grateful to keep my hands on her. We had been warned that this would be painful, but knowing it in your head, and seeing it with your heart were two entirely different things.

Bobby did several of the tests I'd watched him perform over the last week. When he pulled out the scope to examine her eyes he had to ask her several times to open them. She lifted her lids quickly in obedience to his request but they slammed down just as fast.

"Come on Bomber, I need you to keep them open," he said a little firmer.

"It's too bright, it makes it hurt worse," she explained, making Bobby smile.

"You can see the light?" He clarified for me before I tried to punch him for smiling at her pain. If she could see light then that meant she was getting her vision back.

Lester moved to the window and began to pull the curtains shut, blocking out some of the natural light. "Okay, try it again," Bobby asked her and her eyelids began to flutter and her brow furrowed as she tried to make sense out of what she was seeing.

Bobby did his exam as fast as possible as she reported that she could see some movement but nothing had clarity, it was just bright blobs moving in front of her.

"It's the first step," Bobby explained pulling out a couple of vials of medication and a needle, which he expertly filled with some anti-inflammatory and pain management drugs.

He gave her the shot and then rubbed at the site when he was done. "It may take a while for that to kick in, and it might make you sleepy," Bobby warned.

"Will it make the pain go away?" She asked quietly, reminding us that despite our excitement about the possibility of her sight returning that she was still in pain.

Bobby winced before saying, "I hope so, but I don't know if it will get it all."

She nodded and a single tear slipped from her eye. I've been shot, stabbed, burned, and beaten and I don't ever remember something hurting me as much as that single tear running down her face did.

Bobby and Lester moved from the den to the kitchen under the guise of pulling together some dinner, but I knew they were really just trying to give us some space so Steph didn't feel all our eyes watching her for any change in her condition.

I ran my fingers through her wet hair and whispered to her in Italian. I just opened my mouth and spoke, telling her how much I loved her and how much I wanted this to be over so that we could begin our lives together outside of this case. I told her how much I admired her and how one day I hoped she would be my wife and partner in life.

Her head moved a little when I said that last part and she replied, "You would be my marito," using the Italian word for husband.

"Si," I replied with a smile, "I would be proud to be your husband."

"Sarei fiero di essere tua mogile," _(I would be proud to be your wife)_ she replied to me in perfect form.

"You're making me a very happy man," I said, trying to deny the pricking sensation in my eyes. To think that Steph would be in a real relationship with me made me happy, but to think that she might one day consider marrying me brought out a joy I wasn't sure how to contain. I might seem like a heartless soldier, but I was Italian, and every Italian man wanted a woman who loved him and family that revolved around her. Thinking I could one day have that dream was almost too much to accept.

We talked for a while until Bobby came back over and asked Steph how she was feeling. "It still hurts, but it's more like a regular headache that I would take Tylenol for. It's not stabbing like it was," she reported to my great relief.

"Can you try opening your eyes for me?" He asked once more.

Slowly, the blues of her eyes reappeared as she blinked with a look of extreme concentration on her face. "Any better?" Bobby asked the question we all wanted the answer to.

She seemed unsure how to answer the question, "I'm not sure. It doesn't hurt any worse with my eyes open, but I still can't make out anything other than some vague hazy shapes. If I didn't know someone was standing in front of me, I would have no way of knowing the dark blob was a person or something else."

"It's alright Bomber," Bobby consoled her. "The doctors in the hospital said the drug has to work its way out of your system, and it could take hours to finally release its hold on your visual processors. I don't want you to suffer any more than you need to though. Apparently, the pain may flare up some more as it all dissipates from your system, so you'll have to let me know if you need something else to take the edge off."

She nodded that she understood and then lifted her head to look more in my direction. "Can you help me get a shower and put on some clothes?"

"Of course," I assured her, slowly pulling her into my arms to carry her to the bathroom.

"I could walk," she assured me.

"Not now," I interrupted. "I need to hold you to me right now." She didn't debate the issue, so I let it go and allowed my need to protect her take over. As tenderly as an Army trained soldier could, I removed her swimsuit and drew her into the tile shower with me, pulling her against my chest and wrapping my arms around her as the duel shower heads sprayed warm water on both our backs.

Eventually I pulled myself together enough to bathe her and then rushed through cleaning myself as she washed her hair. She let me hold her some more under the cascading streams of warmth once we were both clean. The sound of the water echoing off the tile was the only sound between us.

I could feel the water begin to cool, so I shut it off and wrapped her in a towel before putting a second one in her hands. I knew she liked to wrap her hair up, so I let her turn the towel into a funny looking turban while I dried off and threw on some shorts. I helped her finish drying as well and then handed her some panties, a pair of tan shorts, and a pull over shirt to approve. She nodded they were okay and I went about putting them on her after she took the towel off her head. It had been our system for the last six days, and I wondered once she got her vision back how many of the things I loved to do for her would be taken from me as she sought to reassert her independence.

I caught her yawning as I pulled her shirt down over the top of her shorts and asked if she wanted to take a nap before dinner. "Will you stay with me?" She asked, as though there was a chance I would be anywhere else.

"Of course, Bella," I assured her quickly. "I wasn't planning on going anywhere." We climbed in the bed and she quickly worked her way over into our typical sleeping position. It didn't take long before the combination of the pain, the medication, and the exhaustion caught up with her and she was peacefully sleeping on my shoulder.

I dozed in and out of sleep, but she was restless and every move or jerk of her body would bring me instantly awake, cataloguing threats and preparing a response. It had been a while since I was in a real combat situation, but some reactions just don't go away easily.

As I was willing my heart rate to slow down from yet another of her movements, the door to the bedroom opened slowly and Bobby stepped in. "She doing okay?" he asked, barely above a whisper.

I shrugged with my free shoulder. "She's sleeping, but it's restless. She's moving and making little sounds. This isn't normal for her."

Bobby frowned at my reply and moved closer in order to lift her hand from my chest and take her pulse. "It's been long enough that she could have some more meds. My guess is that she's in pain, and her body is fighting the sleep because of it."

He left, I had to assume to get his bag in order to medicate her again. While I didn't like the fact that he was guessing about what she needed, I was relieved to know if she was in pain that there might be a chance of her getting some relief before she woke up so that she didn't have to suffer any more than was necessary.

Bobby mixed the cocktail in the syringe once more and injected her arm near the shoulder. Steph made a grunting sound of displeasure when he pushed the plunger in, but she continued to sleep through it.

"There's stew in the kitchen if you want some," Bobby offered.

I shook my head no, "I'll wait for her."

That made him smile. "You know when this whole assignment came up I was worried how she would handle the whole forced relationship thing. Then when she picked you I was relieved because I knew at the very least you wouldn't give up on her, and you were a trustworthy guy. But these last two weeks, she's been herself again; happy, open, and all the things that made her such a joy to be around that we hadn't seen in months. We know it was because of you. If it were anybody else, I'd be giving them a lecture about not hurting her now that the assignment is over. Since it's you I'll just say, we're still watching, but so far everything we see is exactly what we always wanted for her."

That was a long speech for Bobby. "I'm hooked man." I hoped that confession told him what he needed to know.

"Tell me something I don't know," he responded flippantly.

"I love her," I clarified.

"Good," he turned more serious to match my tone. "Because it's obvious she loves you too, and you seem to make each other happy. There's not much more you can ask for out of life than that."

Bobby slipped out while I looked back down at the woman sleeping in my arms. He was right, of course. There wasn't much more I could ask for out of life than this.

After the injection she began to settle down and slept more soundly. About 2100 hours she began to awaken and stretch while pressing her body against mine. "Bella," I said while stroking my finger along her jaw line.

"Hmmm?" She made a questioning sound, while still stretching and pressing.

"If you want to have dinner, you need to stop rubbing your body against mine, or I can guarantee you won't be getting out of this bed for a long time.

"I'm hungry," she said in a complaining fashion.

I flipped her over on her back and rolled on top of her. With my mouth against her ear I replied, "So am I, but I'm not sure it's for the stew in the kitchen, so much as it is for the sweetness in my bed."

Her eyes fluttered opened and I wanted to see if her expression would change. She put a hand on either side of my face as she had begun to do in order to pinpoint the location of my mouth when she wanted to kiss me. I assumed she did this because she still couldn't see clearly, which was a disappointment. I had hoped she would sleep through the worst of Raoul's drugs leaving her system and when she awoke she would be fine once again.

When she pulled back from our kiss she said, "First I want some dinner, and then we'll come back here for dessert."

I growled at her and nipped playfully at her lips before agreeing to her plan. Of course I would have agreed to anything she asked for, so I should count myself lucky that what she spelled out made sense.

I jumped out of bed and turned to help her, surprised to see that her feet were already on the floor and she was rising steadily on her own. She took a step but wobbled slightly, so I took her hand in mine and watched her face. Her eyes were open and she was squinting, as though trying to force them to focus.

My heart sped up as I considered that she might be seeing something and trying to feel her way around with her new vision abilities "Easy Bella," I said softly, waiting to let her tell me what was going on in her own time.

She looked over to me and continued to squint, but a smile was definitely forming. "You're fuzzy," she said as though it were the best possible news.

I looked down even though I knew it wasn't true. I still felt the need to double check. Apparently she caught the gesture as she laughed at me. "Not literally," she explained her giggles. "I mean, I can see you, and you're clear enough that I know it's you and not some random guy, but you are still cloudy around the edges."

I threw my arms around her and I know I startled her, but I couldn't hold back. She was beginning to see again, and I had to celebrate that fact. With her still crushed against me I asked, "Does it still hurt?"

She paused as though considering my question to give me an honest response. "It's like a normal headache. It's not pleasant, but it isn't so bad that I can't function around it."

With that I breathed out a sigh of relief and pulled back only enough to get access to her lips. I hungrily drew her mouth to mine, kissing her instead of using words. I needed her to understand how deeply I loved her, and while I would have loved her regardless of the improvement, I was so relieved and excited to know she was beginning to recover because I knew how happy it was making her.

She returned my passion with her own, and I couldn't stop from running my hands down her ass to grip the backs of her thighs and lift her legs to wrap around my waist. Despite the movement, our mouths never broke the contact and I knew as her core pressed over my waist that she could feel all the evidence of my excitement pressing against her.

She pulled back, slightly out of breath and shook her head. "You promised dinner first, and then dessert."

"Is this my dessert?" I asked, hoping she would say yes.

A nod of her head gave me what I needed to know. "Then you're going to need to eat quickly. I'm in the mood for something sweet, and I can't wait long."

She moved her legs as though she was going to get down, but I held tightly to her to stop her progress. With long strides I moved from the bedroom down the hall to the kitchen. Bobby and Lester were sitting at the bar with a beer each in front of them. I walked directly to them and squeezed a little to make a place to sit Steph on the bar in the middle of their drinks. "Tell them," I instructed with a shit eating grin on my face.

Now that was something I hadn't thought about before. Why, when we appear to be hiding a secret and smile, is the expression referred to as shit eating? I mean, if I were really consuming fecal matter I can guarantee my face wouldn't be a happy one.

Before I could get even further into the rabbit hole Steph's voice cut through and announced, "You guys are fuzzy too."

"What?" Lester asked, looking from Stephanie to me as though we'd been smoking something in the back room without sharing any with them.

"I've got some sort of weird tunnel vision where I can see a small area pretty well and the edges around that are slightly out of focus before the rest of the field of vision just washes out into a light blur. So when I look at your faces, I can tell it's you but the edges are fuzzy," she explained clearly.

Bobby shouted, "Hot damn, your vision is coming back, Bomber!" Then he jumped up to grab his medical bag for another round of checks.

Lester stood up and moved between her legs to place his hands on either side of her face. "You can see me?" He asked, as though it were too good to be true.

She nodded and her smile grew even bigger. "Yes, and I forgot how handsome you guys all were."

"Then you must still be a little fuzzy, because I am way past handsome. Maybe once everything clears up you'll be able to do me justice then," Lester teased, drawing her to him for a hug of his own.

I stayed back, despite wishing she were pressed against me instead. Lester was the person that was responsible for picking her up when she was falling apart. They had a special bond, and I needed to keep in mind that just because she and I were in a relationship that her friendship with Lester would still be important to her. I couldn't get in the way of that. Not only would it be wrong, but it would piss her off. My plans for later this evening didn't include a pissed off Stephanie.

"Alright, enough of this. I want to take a look," Bobby said pushing Lester out of the way so that he could use his scope to take a look at her eyes again. The exam took longer than usual, but I assumed it was because the fact that her eyes were trying to work was giving him more to look at.

"Everything still looks good," Bobby announced, allowing me to finally let go of the breath I'd been holding. "But I need to warn you, this process could still take a while before you get back to normal. I mean, it might be hours, or it could be days before your vision is a hundred percent. I don't want you to get discouraged."

She nodded that she understood. "I think a week ago I'd be pissed this wasn't happening quicker, but after going so long with no vision at all, this is enough of an improvement to make me happy. I can wait."

Then she turned her head back in the direction where I was standing and motioned with her hands for me to come closer. "You're too far away, and I've gone too long without being able to look at you." I knew exactly what she meant, so I moved into the position where Lester had been standing and leaned into her between her legs. She moved forward and placed a kiss on my lips before pulling back and saying, "Didn't you bring me out here with the promise of dinner?"

Despite the guys listening in I couldn't help but reply, "No, I brought you out here because it was a necessary first step in order to be able to hurry back to the room for dessert."

Bobby was serving us some stew while we teased each other back and forth. He handed us each a bowl, but Stephanie put hers down and looked at mine instead. I hoped I wasn't misreading what she wanted as I scooped up a small bite, blew on it to be sure it was cool, and then lifted it to her mouth. She grinned and opened up for me to move the spoon forward.

We didn't say anything as we finished the stew, but we continued to watch each other. When the bowl was empty she took it from my hands and sat it behind her, then she lifted her dish and gave it to me as a less than subtle hint that she wasn't finished yet.

I could feel the heat between us building as the food began to restore our depleted energy. Not talking only made the longing increase as I watched her lips open and take the food I offered, then her tongue would clean off any broth that was clinging to them. The movement of her lips and tongue was about to unhinge me. With only a few bites left in the bottom of the bowl I heard Lester clear his throat and say, "Damn, guys, Erik was right. You two are totally hot together."

A wicked little smile came over Stephanie's face and I knew she was thinking the same thing I was. If he thought this was hot, he had no idea how much warmer we could make it.


	21. All Wrapped Up

_The characters below are a result of JE tireless creative efforts._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234), I can't believe how much time you have so generously given as the beta on this story. Thank you. _

**Chapter 21 – All Wrapped Up**

_Stephanie's POV_

If the guys thought it was hot to watch Vince and I eat and tease each other then they hadn't seen anything yet. Before I could act on that thought the rest of what Lester said registered and I snapped my head around to where Les was sitting to my right and asked, "What do you mean Erik said we were hot?"

Luckily my vision was improving enough for me to see the changes on Lester's face because I could swear he blushed when I asked that.

"Do you remember the night you and Vince…ahh…" Les couldn't get a decent sentence together, which only intrigued me all the more. "Well, when you stopped pretending and got real?"

I could feel my face getting warmer and knew it was my turn to blush. Vince's hands tightened behind me and pulled me closer to him.

Having jumped into the deep end, Les was never one to back down, so he kept talking. "Well when Erik decided to get his freak on by playing peeping Tom, your man here gave me a call and asked us to teach Erik a lesson in respect." That explained the cryptic phone call while my back was pressed against the wall.

"I wondered who you called," I said leaning into Vince even more.

"Bobby and I went to the garage and waited on Erik. He got out of his car and his mouth was running a mile a minute trying to tell us what he had walked in on and how the two of you were so into each other that it was absolutely the hottest thing he'd ever seen." I saw Lester's fist begin to tighten, so I reached out and put my hand over it.

He looked at our hands and then up at me with a big smile on his face. I guess my vision was clearing a little more since I was catching little details like that again. Les moved his hand to hold onto mine to finish his story.

"At the time, I was totally pissed because the guy was not only jerk enough to break in your place and watch, but he didn't even have the dignity to keep his mouth shut. So Bobby and I invited him down to the gym the next morning and he accepted, probably thinking he was young and tough and this was his chance to show RangeMan what he was made of." I smiled because I knew I'd seen Les the next morning and he didn't have a scratch on him.

"When the kid walked in I invited him into the ring to spar and he was dumb enough to just climb in. I handed him some pads and he looked at me like I was asking him to drink out of a baby bottle," Lester explained.

Then Bobby jumped in and said, "So I climbed in the ring and explained to him that at RangeMan, everything that makes us strong is built on respect. We respect the chain of command, we respect each other, and above all, we respect what is good and decent around us."

Les jumped back in, "He agreed with everything Bobby said, so I asked him why he failed to respect you the night before and he started smiling. He said if we'd been there we would have understood that it was just too hot to turn away from."

"So, we spent the next fifteen minutes teaching him that above anything else, you are what is decent and good around us and every level of respect is to be shown to you, which means controlling our cocks and keeping and mouths shut," Bobby summed up the lesson almost making me feel sorry for Erik.

"Only fifteen minutes?" Vince asked, clearly disappointed.

"Yea, the pussy took one on the chin and was out cold long before I wanted it to be done." Les confessed with an equal level of disappointment in his voice.

I couldn't help but play with the guys, so I turned back to Vince and leaned away enough to get his attention. "Didn't we have a discussion early on about me handling the guys if they had a problem with us?"

Vince didn't back down at all, "Yes, but this wasn't a guy having a problem with us, this was a jackass wanting to join in with us. Those are two different things."

I rolled my eyes and spit out, "Please, I know how to handle punks like Erik. He isn't a bad guy; he's just too young to know any better."

"Well, I think after his lesson in the gym he knows better now," Vince replied a little too sure of himself for my taste.

"Somehow I doubt that's true, but when he steps out of line again, I want you to promise to let me handle it." I warned him.

Vince smiled as though he felt confident this wouldn't be an issue. "If he steps out of line again I promise to let you handle it."

I made a frustrated sound which had Vince pressing to me instead of moving away like most guys would have. I had to admit that unexpected advance was warming me in places that I thought were too tired to be so hot. I decided to match his aggression with my own and asked, "Didn't you bring me out here with the promise of dessert?"

His expression faltered for only a brief second before saying, "From the freezer or from our private reserve?" The way his eyebrow arched when he said private reserve, I knew he was asking if I really wanted ice cream or if I wanted to go back to the bedroom."

I clasped my arms behind his neck and moved to put my mouth at his ear, "I think we're both going to want some privacy for this."

He scooted my rear end off the counter top and quickly got us down the hall, slamming the door behind us with his foot.

"You'll be the death of me," he warned with a nip to my ear.

"Maybe, but what a way to go," I teased back.

The next morning I woke up and smiled at how warm and comfortable I was snuggled into Vince's chest. His breathing was even and smooth, so I assumed he was still asleep giving me a rare moment to look at him. I moved as slowly as I could, ignoring the dull ache in my head in order to indulge my desire to see him.

I pulled the sheet down slowly and tried to hold a sigh back at the sight of him naked and glorious in front of me. It was hard to bite back the smile at the thought that all of this was mine and mine alone.

I was already aware of the two scars from being shot twice in the shoulder. He was wonderfully bare with only a fine amount of hair on his chest that began to increase at his naval. He had naturally olive tanned skin that my eyes were content to just feast upon. Looking at his side, I noticed a long scar and ran my fingers across it. Somehow I had missed this during the few times I'd been able to see him with his shirt off. Of course, in my defense, when Vince had his shirt off any red blooded girl would have trouble focusing on such a fine line on his side with all the wonderful hard muscles right in front of you.

I scooted down more and pressed my lips over the scar wondering what happened to him. His scratchy morning voice said, "A knife from a drug runner in Columbia on a mission. It did a lot more damage than the little one that chick used when Brett and I picked up a skip a couple weeks ago. It took Bobby thirty minutes to stitch and dress it in the field until we could get back to the safe house, then he had to rip the stitches and do it again. It got infected, and I can remember the heat from it as we worked our way through the jungle to meet with our extraction team. There were a few hours that I thought they should have just left me there."

"How did you make it?" I asked, feeling the fear of losing him despite the obvious fact that he'd survived.

"Les," Vince said as though his name said it all. "He kept talking to me and kept me from giving into the fever and sitting down. There was probably only a quarter of a mile left to go and my legs were gone. I remember him threatening to sling me over his shoulder if I didn't keep putting one boot in front of the other. I knew that would hurt like a son of a bitch, and I knew Les was strong enough to do it, so I kept trying. I remember getting into the helicopter, but the next memory I have after that is in an Army hospital in Germany with Bobby pressing on my side. Apparently, I was out for a few days and scared the whole team that the infection had spread to my bloodstream and that I might not make it."

I felt a tear run down my face and tried to hide it by pressing another kiss to the old wound on his side, thanking God that Les had saved this man for me. We had been together such a short time, but even now I could see how we were perfectly created to be together. This was it for me.

"Are there others?" I asked, hoping he knew what I meant. I wanted to know about any other scars he had. I wanted to know the stories behind them, the horrors he had lived through that had made him the man I loved.

He rolled over onto his stomach and showed me his back. I'd seen his back before, so I wasn't sure what he was trying to do. "They're small," he offered as a hint.

I sat up, allowing the sheet to fall that had been hiding my own nakedness, and leaned in to help my eyes spot anything out of the ordinary. Then I saw it. Beginning at his shoulder blades and running down his back was a trail of scars that almost looked like he had been dragged across gravel. I knew because I had a similar set of marks on me and that's what happened in my case.

"Rocks?" I asked, trying to help draw out the story.

"Yes," he said with sleep still thick in his, voice making him sound even more sexy than usual. "I was maybe twelve and had snuck outside to get under my dad's truck on a Saturday evening. The family was going to confession before mass the next morning, so I took off my good shirt and hung it over the garage door knob. Then I climbed under the car, just to look around. Engines fascinated me, and I knew I was the first one ready, so it might be a while before we left."

"I guess I lost track of time because the next thing I know my mother is shrieking about me ruining my clothes so that I can't go to church and yelling some shit about how I needed to be more like Marco." He paused for a minute before continuing, "My dad was responding to my mother's outburst, and he grabbed my ankles before I could get up on my own. He pulled me out from under the car, cutting my back on the lose rocks under me. I bit my tongue, refusing to give them the satisfaction of knowing what they'd done."

"I put my dress shirt on and followed the family to the car and rode to church. After I came out of confession I knelt in a pew in front of my mother, waiting for my brother to have his turn. I figured he'd be quick as he was obviously so perfect in their minds that he'd have nothing to confess. But it took him just long enough for my mom to see the blood seeping through my shirt. I guess she felt guilty because we went straight home and she hauled me to the bathroom to clean me up and fuss at me for not saying something sooner. I guess that was her way of apologizing." He shrugged as he said the last bit.

"Get up," I told him, obviously confusing him in the process. He sat up immediately and rubbed his eyes to clear them. I stretched out in front of him and pointed to my back.

He ran his fingers over my back lightly and then settled them in the few places where I knew there were still light scars. "My mom caught me under the car with my dad. When she pulled me out to begin forcing me into a mini version of her and Val, the lose asphalt scratched and cut a little. Our scars are the same."

He placed a series of kisses on my back telling me he saw them all, despite how light they were. "We are the same," he agreed, beginning to massage my back.

Somehow I'd lost my chance to investigate his body, but I couldn't complain because of how wonderful it felt to have his hands working in my muscles. He chuckled a little, making me ask what was so funny, "The first time I gave you a massage I thought you carried the weight of the world on your shoulders. Despite everything you've been through over the last couple of weeks, you've lost a lot of that tension somehow."

I shrugged as though the answer were obvious. "I don't carry it all anymore. You help." That sentence didn't need any further explanation. As far as I was concerned, it said it all.

A few hours later we were packing up to return to Trenton. Les had told us during a very late brunch that Ranger was back to spearhead the final debriefing with the DEA, and they needed us there to officially close the case. Bobby gave me another exam and decided that I no longer needed an anti-inflammatory drug, but I got another dose of the pain medication because the longer I was awake, the stronger the throbbing in my head was becoming.

My vision was definitely better this morning. The tunnel vision I had the night before was greatly improved so that only my peripheral vision seemed to be impacted with the blurry annoyance. It probably wasn't safe for me to drive, but I could take care of myself like this, so I wasn't too upset that I wasn't completely back to normal yet.

The ride to Trenton was wonderful. The temperature had cooled to the mid seventies and the windows in Vince's truck were all the way down. About ten minutes into the ride I began to feel sleepy, so I turned and rested my head on the arm rests between us. Vince managed to drive with his left hand and put the other over me in a way that was both protective and loving.

The next memory I had was of warm lips pressing against mine in the Haywood garage. I couldn't help the smile that broke out in response. "As much as I'd like to move this to our apartment on four, I think Ranger and the feds are waiting on us on five."

I nodded that I understood and sat up for him to guide me from the truck with his hands on my hips. After the door to the truck closed I spun around and asked, "What do you mean 'our apartment'?"

He gave me a sheepish smile and confessed, "I was hoping that you would begin to think of the apartment I have through RangeMan as our apartment here, and that you'd let me think of your place across town as our apartment there. I don't like the idea of us being apart at night very much."

I shut my eyes and let the warmth of his confession wash over me. "Me either," I finally said to his great relief. He took my hand and led me to the elevator.

When we stepped off at five Vince led us to the conference room near Ranger's office. I had both my hands wrapped around his forearm completely out of habit, not out of necessity. I could feel people watching me but chose to ignore it, wanting to get the briefing out of the way before dealing with my guys.

"Babe," Ranger said as he rose and walked over to us at the door. "Here," he said, pulling out a chair and placing a hand at the small of my back to guide me to it. I was going to protest, but I knew he was trying to help, and I'd seen that same look of guilt on his face before when he thought I had gotten hurt because of some danger from working a distraction for him. He was blaming himself for what I'd been through. I took my hands off Vince and touched Ranger's arm to say, "I'm fine, Ranger. My vision is coming back, we got the bad guys, and none of what happened to me is your fault. You're going to have to let this go, or it's going to piss me off."

His blank face slipped just enough to let me see his surprise at his words. Then he smiled slightly and said, "I'll try, Babe." He shook his head as he stood up to walk back to his chair across the table from Vince and me. As he moved away I could have sworn he mumbled something about me never disappointing.

Four and a half hours later I had answered every question I could, and the DEA agents were looking pleased with the case they had built against Raoul. They explained that Maggie had agreed to testify against her brother in exchange for immunity for her role and the fraud regarding Christopher's death. He had already been moved up here, along with her Aunt, and I was relieved to know that she was going to be able to move forward with her son in her life once more. I knew she had done some things that were horrible, but knowing why she did it made it hard for me to hold it against her.

It was evening when the agents left and Ranger came over to ask if I wanted to have dinner with him. I glanced at Vince and saw the hurt all over his face. He wasn't going to speak up and refuse to let me have a private meal with Ranger, but I knew the idea of me alone on seven was causing him agony.

"Actually, Vince and I were going to eat something in our apartment, but I'd love to catch up tomorrow," I offered as an alternative, surprising both men.

"Have you given any thought to how you're going to break off your relationship?" Ranger asked, turning his shock into an opportunity.

I smiled, "We don't need to." I sat up slightly in order to take Vince's hand in mine. His grip was tight as his thumb ran over my knuckle, telling me loud and clear how much he appreciated what I had done.

"Why not?" Ranger asked, confused about why we didn't need to finish the plan of breaking up publicly.

I looked down at our hands and felt the throbbing in my head begin to increase. I figured I didn't have long before it got bad, so I talked fast. "Because somewhere along the way, we both quit acting and our relationship went from an assignment to something real." Vince stood up and pulled me with him.

"Bella?" he asked with a worried expression. "What's wrong?"

I thought I had been hiding the pain really well, but Vince must have seen through it. Ranger still looked completely confused but didn't interrupt. I could still feel him silently assessing though.

I put my free hand up to my temple and pressed hard, hoping to alleviate some of the searing pain. Vince picked me up and began to walk from the conference room calling over his shoulder for Ranger to call Bobby and have him meet us on four.

Ranger didn't respond, but I heard him make a call on his cell and arrange for Bobby to meet us.

Ten minutes later Bobby was poking me once more. The pain was bad enough that white dots were dancing in front of my eyes, and I felt as though my stomach were only one small second away from revolting from the pain alone. He was whispering and assuring me the meds would kick in soon and I'd probably be in for a long nap. I couldn't speak in response. I'd never had a migraine, but this is how I always thought they must feel.

I was lying across Vince's lap, trying to keep my breathing even and concentrating on his fingers working softly through my hair. I wasn't really able to keep up with the conversation, so having something as pleasant as his hands to think about was a great distraction.

I heard someone knock, and then the door opened. A few seconds later I smelled the worlds best smelling shower gel and knew Ranger had entered the room. I was still in too much pain to talk to him, so I continued to try and convince my stomach to stay settled and played possum in Vince's lap.

"How is she?" Ranger asked just loud enough that it cut through the fog in my head.

"She's in pain," Vince's voice cut out, as though having to point out the obvious was painful for him to do.

Bobby explained what I'd been through and how the doctors had warned that as the optic nerve began to reacclimatize I might experience migraine like headaches for the next few months. Oh God, I couldn't handle these things slipping up unexpectedly for that long. I wouldn't be able to go anywhere alone if they thought there was a chance of this happening.

I heard Ranger jump into planning mode, spelling out how I wasn't to be left alone for any period until the doctors cleared me from these spells. I wanted to object but my stomach was still churning from the pain, so I had to stay mute as my freedom was being discussed as casually as the evening sports.

Finally Vince spoke up, "Stop it." I didn't care what he said next, the fact that he told them to stop had impressed me already. "You aren't caging her. She'll fight it and lose her shadow. Let her decide what's best for her. She knows better than us what she needs."

"Our first priority is to keep her safe," Ranger argued. "If she's at the mall and has an episode then what are we going to do? An old skip could get to her before us and she'd be powerless to stop them." He made a good point, but I would never admit to it aloud.

"We'll come when she hits her panic button if she went without us. But you're assuming she'll want to go alone. This is scary for her too, and I doubt she'll want to be in a position that leaves her that vulnerable this soon." I liked the way Vince explained it. "You've got to trust her."

"Do you?" Ranger turned the tables back on Vince, and I smiled internally, already knowing his answer.

"Absolutely," Vince told him in a tone so certain no one could argue.

"What happened between you two during the last month?" Ranger asked, relaxing his tone and trying to figure out what had changed in his absence.

"We learned to dance," Vince replied with a hint of smile in his voice.

"No shit," Ranger replied, not appreciating the coded talk.

"We learned to dance together, and in that we had to trust each other. In the time we spent together to keep up appearances we got to know each other and then gradually everything else came. I can't tell you exactly what happened, or when it did- as in a specific moment in time where I went from her mission partner to the man who loved her more than life- but it happened and there's no turning back now," Vince told him.

"She let you in?" Ranger asked, as though her were perfectly aware of my difficulties letting guys get close to me.

"All the way," Vince replied with no hesitation.

"Don't hurt her," Ranger said with an edge in his voice I didn't recognize. "If you ever lose that trust you'll spend everyday beating yourself up for being so foolish." It was almost spoken with a hint of personal experience, but that was ridiculous.

"She still trusts you," Vince told him softer. "She assumed the reason she was single was because she wasn't worth having, not because you didn't want her."

"It wasn't a matter of not wanting her," Ranger spit out quickly. "God, some days I wanted her so damned much I couldn't think straight. But I knew it wasn't right to pull her to me. I'd have smothered her in the name of keeping her safe from my past, and she would have resented it."

A few quiet seconds ticked back before Ranger stepped up again, "You were right to stop us before. She would have been pissed that we took over her life while she was sleeping, and I would have forced it on her anyway. I can see now why you two refuse to split up just because the assignment is over."

Vince took a couple of deep breaths before saying, "She's everything to me. I couldn't give her up, or push her away. I wouldn't survive having my heart ripped out like that."

"You'd survive," Ranger replied with his voice growing distant. "But you'd beg God to take you."

I felt a different set of fingers in my hair and figured it was Ranger. There was that light tingling on my neck anytime he was near, but I could feel the difference in their touches too. Ranger's hand was loving, but he always seemed to touch me as though he were saying goodbye. Like this was the last time he might be allowed to have contact with me, and it always left a trail of bittersweet emotion. By contrast, Vince's hand was at the back of my head stroking and giving of himself to me. Nothing was being held back, and everything he felt was being generously communicated with every touch.

The door closed and I felt my body lose the battle with consciousness.

When I woke up the next time I was face to face with Vince in bed. He was smiling softly at me and a slight bit of light was coming in through the windows. "Morning," I said with my lips nearly completely closed.

"Good morning," he replied with his smile growing rapidly. "How do you feel?"

I opened my eyes more and was relieved to realize the pain was completely gone. "It's gone," I told him, and he pulled me on top of him.

One long hot kiss later and I was hating my body for making me have to tell him that I couldn't go any further. I had to use the bathroom. Reluctantly he let me go, and I got out of bed to begin a new day.

Vince shared his closet with me and I took another of his dress shirts, converting it into an outfit that I could wear upstairs to see if there was any work I could do to be helpful. I had thought about it this morning and decided I wasn't going anywhere alone for awhile. I needed to know the headaches were behind me before I would feel adventurous enough to venture out by myself. This way, I could still get an income and be close to Bobby's wonder drugs

The morning passed by easily enough. I was coming back from the printer with a search I'd printed and felt someone walking behind me. I sat in my chair and realized Erik had followed me with a big smile on his face. "What?" I asked, curious what on earth had made him so happy. I figured after the lesson Les and Bobby taught him, he wouldn't want to be anywhere near me.

"Wearing Vince's clothes, huh?" He asked with a foolish grin and an outstretched hand pointing to the dress shirt I had on. I didn't know if was the lack of adventure over the last couple of days that made me do it, but I began to talk to him, giving him the confidence to sit on my desk leaning even closer. I had my purse at my feet under the desk and I reached in for 'some gum', but coming up with my stun gun. I had to assume since Vince had been taking it upon himself to pack my bag for me that if it were in here that it was also fully charged.

When Erik said, "I assume since you're in his clothes that he must have ruined yours. I guess some people can't control themselves. Of course if I were Vince I'd want you in my clothes too, so everybody would know who you belonged to," something in me snapped. There was probably nothing wrong with what he was saying; if anything it was proof that he was treating me just like one of the guys. I'd heard them talk this way to each other in the break room on numerous occasions, but it offended me to be thought of as a possession, so I pulled my hand up slowly, touched the stun gun to Erik's leg and hit the button. Before he could even register what I'd done, he was collapsing into a heap on the floor.

I picked up my phone and hit Vince's extension, "Ho bisogno di te," (I need you) I told him when he answered the phone.

Then I hit the number for Les and told him, "Come to my cubicle and bring some duct tape, lots of it."

Vince's boots were hitting the floor as he ran to my side. "Bella?" he asked with his voice full of worry. I felt guilty for not explaining a little more on the phone. He saw Erik drooling on the floor and I said, "I told you guys his lesson wasn't complete."

Vince gave me a wonderful little smile and asked, "How can I help you?"

About that time Lester came up with three rolls of silver tape and a raised eyebrow. But as soon as he saw our co-worker sleeping on the ground his whole face lit up with a smile. "Gentlemen," I said to the crowd that was beginning to assemble, "We have some wrapping to do."

I made a promise to Erik when Vince was cut by the skip's girlfriend that if he ever pushed me again I'd stun him and duct tape him to his office chair. It was time he learned I was due respect, not only because the guys said I was good and decent, but because I was every bit as much to be feared as they were. By the time I was done with him Erik was going to wish Vince had just called him to mats.


	22. Forever Bella

_The characters below are courtesy of the creative genius of JE, not me._

_Fredda (Rangergirl1234) you've finished another story as the beta. Any moments that shine are all because of your careful eye and clever suggestions. You rock! (Oh man, now I'm back on rocks again.)_

**Chapter 22 – Forever Bella**

_Vince's POV_

"Bella, do you think you're going to be able to make a decision anytime soon?" I asked with a teasing tone, but also quite curious if it were possible.

"I might be able to if you'd help a little," she quipped back.

"Whatever you chose will be fine," I tried to assure her, knowing I was way out of my league in trying to help with this.

"Then remind me again why you insisted on coming here?" She asked with a hint of temper flaring in a sexy way.

I couldn't help but smile at her. "I'm here to watch your back while you're so distracted trying to make a decision."

She spun around to face me completely before responding. "I've had a lot of body guards over the last few years, but you're the only one who thinks watching my back means staring at my ass."

I didn't know if I should be pissed about the possibility of one of the guys looking at her ass, or pleased that she realized that was exactly what I was doing. It wasn't really my fault, she had on those short shorts and every time she leaned over to pick up something new they tightened over her back side, giving me the perfectly framed view of where my hands had been just hours before. It was heaven in the midst of hell. The sweet memories were getting me hard as bricks, but it was hell that I couldn't do anything about it- at least not now. We still had plenty to do today, even if Stephanie didn't realize it.

Finally I realized if I didn't help her, we might waste another hour here and I could feel myself aging already. I stood up and approached her slowly, not wanting to surprise her. "Show me your top two favorites."

She was holding two pairs of frames for glasses in her hands. They looked virtually identical to me, which might make this more difficult. She put each one on in turn and as I suspected, I couldn't tell a bit of difference but I guessed and told her, "I liked the first one better."

Then I held my breath and waited as she toggled between them several more times, "I think you're right. I'll go with those." Oh thank God, we might get out of here in time to move on to the next difficult decision of the day.

After the helpful optometrist finished fitting her we walked out and got in the truck. She was too quiet and I could tell she was upset. I turned slightly in my seat to look at her and she must have felt my gaze because she started talking.

"Why do I have to get glasses? There's nothing wrong with my vision, I'm going to look like a dork!" That was probably only the tip of the iceberg of what she was really thinking.

"The doctor said you probably won't always need them. You only have to wear them when you're working on the computer or reading because the muscles in your eyes haven't recuperated from all the aftereffects of the drugs from Raoul, and if you want to stop the headaches while your muscles catch up, then this is your best option," I repeated back the information as Bobby explained it to me, hoping it would bring her some measure of comfort.

"I notice you didn't say anything about me looking like a dork," she said with a fake pout. The corner of her mouth was fighting to stay in place without tipping up in a smile.

"You can't be serious about that remark, so I didn't think it warranted a comment," I told her while turning the key in the ignition to take us anywhere but here. "Besides, anybody as sexy as you can't be considered a dork no matter what's on your face."

"You're just saying that because you spent the last hour staring at my ass," she replied coolly.

She had to bring up her ass again didn't she? I had finally gotten my body under control and then she brings that back to mind. I just growled as a response and headed toward the mall.

"Where are we going? Don't you have to work this afternoon?" She asked, looking at the clock showing it was an hour away from lunch.

"I switched with Erik so that I could take you to the mall," I told her, smiling at the memory of how willing Erik was to cover my shift when I told him it would be a favor to Stephanie.

Ever since she stunned him and duct taped him to his chair, Erik has had a new appreciation of my woman. She let him stay there for an hour with tape over his mouth, passing by him every so often to touch his face or sit in his lap and whisper in his ear. I don't have any idea what she said to him, but it must have been good because I've seen terrorists having their fingers cut off one by one that were sweating less than he was. Ever since that little episode of revenge he's steered clear of her and has been nothing less than respectful of her in his attitude and words.

She laughed when I told her who was covering for me. "I'll bet he was willing to help you out." After a minute of laughing at one of the guy's expense she asked, "Not that I mind being taken to the mall, but is there a reason we're going today?"

I pulled in a space near the door at Macy's and answered her, "You need a dress."

"What kind of dress? Ranger didn't say anything about a distraction." She was completely at a loss.

I knew what I was about to say was either going to make her excited or pissed, and I had no idea which one would win out. I decided to just bite the bullet and lay it out there. "Our mission isn't quite as finished as the feds thought."

Her eyes got huge and fear seemed to be the emotion that won out, making me realize what a jackass I was for letting her think there was a threat to her in some way. Quickly I jumped in, "As far as the DEA is concerned we're done, but part of our cover forced us to have a wedding at the end of the summer that we were supposedly learning to dance for. My cousin is getting married in two weeks, and you need a new dress to go with me to New York to dance at her fancy wedding."

I felt like I was riding a roller coaster watching the emotions on her face change so quickly. "But, your family will be there," she pointed out.

"That's the point," I replied softly. "I want them to meet the most important person in my life, and you did promise to dance with me at my cousin's wedding."

"I know, but I didn't realize there was a real chance of that happening," she seemed genuinely worried.

"My family will love you," I told her meaning it. "Remember, I'm not the golden child. They'll be so relieved to know there is a woman out there who can stand being around me and accept my job that nothing you could say or do would make them dislike you."

"Wow, when you set the bar that low, it does seem pretty easy," she commented with some bitterness in her voice.

I put a hand on her arm to get her focused on me once more. "I didn't mean that they wouldn't like you because of the wonderful person you are. I think what I said came out wrong."

"No, it came out perfectly," she replied leaning her head back on the seat and turning it to look at me. "It was just a reminder that your family thinks of you similar to how my family looks at me. I just don't understand how they could possibly see your brother as somehow being better than you. It makes me want to give them a piece of my mind."

I tried to keep from laughing at her defense of me. Of course I knew she was more than capable of telling them what she really thought of how my family treated me, but I knew it wasn't worth the effort. "Personally, I'd rather use the excuse to drive to the city, have some wedding cake from a great Italian bakery, dance for a few hours, and then go to a hotel and spend the night with my woman."

"Che cossa si vuole fare durante la notte?" _(What do you want to do during the night?)_ She asked me in sexy Italian.

I moved to cup her face with my hands and removed any distance between our lips to whisper back, "La stessa cosa ho fatto ieri sera," _(The same thing I did last night.)_ I told her, wondering if she would understand. We'd spent a lot of time talking in Italian, and I could tell she was remembering a great deal. Plus she seemed to have a natural inclination for learning it. I was right about what a turn on it was to have her speaking to me using the language I loved so much.

She moaned at my mention of the hours we'd spent making love last night. I had already planned on switching my shift with Erik to take her shopping, but after our marathon last night I needed the day off to get my legs back under me solidly once again.

She was the first one to pull back after the windows began to fog up in the truck. I hadn't got caught necking since I was a young teenager, but the glares the two older ladies were giving us as they walked by the truck told me we'd been caught and condemned for our inability to control ourselves.

Steph took a few deep breaths and then asked, "So you said something about me needing a new dress. How fancy is this wedding?"

"It's my cousin Nicki, and she was convinced she was destined to be a princess when I was growing up, so I'd say if there is anyway to make it more formal than usual, she'll find it." I told her grimacing at the memory of how much we all hated going to her birthday parties growing up because they always had fairy tale themes and required costumes. I was so glad Steph could play a true lady anytime it was called for, but she didn't mind getting down and dirty either. "I'll be in a tux." I figured she might want to know what I was planning on wearing.

"Get out of the truck," she snapped at me with her eyes the darker shade of blue that usually meant she was completely turned on.

"Why?" I asked moving my hand to the handle. "Is something wrong?"

She jumped out and walked around to where I was standing, still watching her carefully. "Nothing is wrong," she assured me, taking my hand in hers. "But the idea of you in a tux meant we either needed a little distance between us or the use of a bed for an extended period of time. Since I didn't see a bed anywhere nearby, I figured we needed some fresh air and a crowd to keep my Hungarian hormones in check."

I had to laugh at her honest response then I teased her. "Bella, those aren't your Hungarian hormones. I feel the same way about you, and I'm a hundred percent Italian."

She bumped me with her shoulder in a joking way and I dropped her hand to throw my arm around her shoulder. It seemed like a way to keep her from bumping me again, but in reality, it was a way to draw her closer just because I liked the feel of her there.

We walked to the dress section of Macys and I stood back and watched her tear through the racks of clothes. She would hold up a dress that even I could see would look fantastic on her and then hold the hanger up in front of her as though trying to do some sort of virtual try on. Finally, she would look at the tag, make a face and then put it back on the rack, moving on to the next possibility. It took a few repetitions of this process before I began to wonder what she was doing. When it hit me, I got irritated.

I walked over to where she was jerking the hangers on the next rack and I put my hand on top of hers to stop her progress. When she looked up at me confused, I tried to keep the irritation from my voice when I spoke, "Tell me you aren't putting those gorgeous dresses back because of a price tag."

The look on her face told me instantly that was exactly what she was doing. "Go back and get the ones you liked, and don't worry about the price," I instructed her watching her eyes narrow at my command.

"I will do no such thing," she argued through clenched teeth. "That last dress was five hundred dollars and I can't spend that much on a single piece of clothing."

"I can," I interrupted. "And I intend to."

"Oh, hell no. You aren't buying me clothes." She saw where this was going and didn't seem to like it.

"I remember a conversation a few months ago where I told you that my woman wouldn't open her wallet for anything when we were together. This is included in that. I'm going to buy you a dress, the shoes to go with it, and what ever jewelry you want to finish it off. Then I'm going to take you to lunch and I'm buying that too." I was probably stepping over the line, but we'd had this argument before, and I thought I had been clear about how this was going to work.

"We talked about you buying food when we were out together and although I still think it's ridiculous, I go along with that. But this is something different. I earn my own money and I buy my own clothes. I don't need you to do that for me," she bluntly pointed out.

Now this is one of those times when I probably should have told her I just wanted to help and then explain how all the missions I had gone on for years had given me a bank balance so big that I would never be able to spend it and the thought of spoiling her a little would make me very happy. But that isn't what I said. I blame my Italian heritage and the way she was grinding her teeth in anger for what happened next.

I glanced back and saw one of the dresses she had put back and picked it up with my right hand and I wrapped my left hand around her arm, practically dragging her with me to the fitting room. A clerk was standing there, watching us with eyes as big as saucers. "She needs to try this on," I reported as the lady stepped back, instructing us all the rooms were empty.

I proceeded to pull her into the last fitting room which was huge and had a bench along one wall and a chair in the opposite corner. In the middle there was a three paneled mirror, allowing you to see every angle of the dress you were trying on.

Her shock at me actually going in the dressing room with her was enough to give me the chance to drag her in with me and shut the door. I hung the dress up on the hook provided and then dropped my hand to say, "I want to see that dress on you."

"Then shut your eyes and imagine it mister, because I'm not gonna do it." She barked in return.

So that's how she was going to play it? I took a step forward and hid my smile when she took a step back. We repeated this pattern until her back was against the wall and my body was pressed into hers.

I let my mouth hover over her ear to tell her, "I want to do this. I can't wait to take you back home and show you off to my family so that they realize the kid they assumed would never turn into anything and would never have a family of his own has somehow managed to attract the attention of the world's most beautiful woman. Every person at that wedding isn't going to be able to take their eyes off of you, and I want you to have whatever dress your heart desires to endure that kind of attention. I want this to be the first time you let me spoil you, and I want you to begin to adjust to the idea of me doing a lot more of this. I'm not trying to take over your life, or control what you wear, but I want to feel like I've done something to show you how much joy you bring to my life. This is just money, and I have plenty. Please let me do this."

When I finished whispering against her ear she shivered and put her hands flat against my chest. She could easily push me away like this but the warmth of her touch didn't feel like she was fighting me. If anything, it felt like she was fighting herself to keep from tearing my clothes off in the dressing room. Still, I knew it wasn't wise to underestimate Stephanie's responses, especially when she was mad, so I tried to stay still and wait for her reaction.

"You want me to let you get this dress and adjust to the idea of you doing more of this in the future?" She asked in a breathless voice.

I hummed my agreement with her summary question, keeping my lips right beside her ear. She waited what felt like an eternity before I heard her swallow and then say, "You realize this doesn't just mean a dress, right?"

I assumed she meant it was pushing her boundaries of letting someone provide for her when she fought so hard to be self sufficient. I thought we had made great strides over the last few weeks and it was important I didn't make it feel like I was trying to control her in anyway. "Tell me what it means," I said still refusing to move from the safe position I was in.

"It means after we find a dress, that shoes have to be considered, and then there is the hard part." She spoke quietly, but it sounded as though she were resigning herself to letting me do this.

"What's the hard part?" I asked, feeling daring enough to move so that I could place a series of kisses along her neck. I honestly felt pretty good about winning the argument and I wanted to celebrate my victory by touching her.

"When we're done here we have to go to Victoria's Secret to find something appropriate to wear under the dress," the little temptress said before exerting a little pressure in her hands to force me to take a step backward. She kept talking, pushing me back and following my retreat step for step to the opposite wall. "If everyone is going to be looking at the dress and watching us, I want you alone to know what's under the dress. And I want it to keep you in knots all night long while we're dancing together."

I took a deep breath and wondered if the zipper in my pants was strong enough to hold back what was currently pushing against it to break free. "Oh God, Bella," I moaned, biting down on her neck lightly, then running my tongue over the flesh I had in my mouth, savoring the taste of her.

"You want to buy me a dress?" She asked with her voice getting stronger as I lost my ability to talk because of the image of her in some skimpy Victoria Secret outfit under the classy dress hanging on the hook beside us. I let go of her skin in my mouth and nodded that I did.

"Then sit down in that chair," she instructed with a soft shove with her hands, gripping my shirt and pushing me away from her. "But you can't say a word, and you can't make a move to get out of your seat."

I lowered my frame into the chair in the corner and saw the dancing of her eyes. I should have been pissed that she had just worked me like that, but I was still getting my way in being able to buy her outfit. And I was going to get to take her Victoria Secret, so that had to be good news for me, didn't it?

She opened the door to the dressing room and slipped out, retuning moments later with several more dresses to add to her stack to try on. Then she shot me a smile that would have made the devil himself beg for mercy as her nimble fingers began to loosen the buttons on her shirt. When the last little white button fell from its place on her shirt, she let it fall from her long arms to the floor. Next, the clasp of her little denim shorts was undone, followed by the slow lowering of her zipper. She wiggled her hips seductively to push the pants down, all the while keeping her eyes locked to mine.

When she stepped out of her shorts her shoes also disappeared leaving her in front of me wearing white lace panties and a barely there bra that seemed to match. The panties covered more of her than the slinky numbers she wore to bed to taunt my dreams. The legs were cut high, giving the impression that her legs were at least five feet long, but the triangle in the front was generous in design, covering everything my body wanted to see, but it was lace so I could make our the shape and detail of what was hidden beneath it. That tease of a look was enough to make me move one leg to rest its ankle at my knee in order to hide the pulsing bulge in my pants.

I must not have been very good at hiding anything because Stephanie lifted her index finger and moved it from side to side in a motion telling me 'no'. "You stay put, no matter what."

Then she turned her attention to the dresses. The first was a deep wine color. She slipped it on and it was pretty on her, but it wasn't a dress that I thought fit her personality. It was formal in a stuffy way. She turned in every possible way to look at her reflection before taking it off and pulling a white dress on. It was short and tight, and looked good on her, but it wasn't going to work for the kind of dancing I had in mind; maybe at a night club, but not in front of my family. She went through three other dresses before picking up the final hanger.

This dress was a deep blue, perfectly matching her eyes when she was really angry or about to scream my name for a much more pleasant reason. It had thin straps at the top and a neckline that just barely covered enough to keep me from poking my cousins' eyes out to stop them from ogling her. There was a pattern to the material as though it were woven like a basket over her chest and waist before falling to a straight skirt that had the remains of the woven ribbons running down the length of it. The best feature was that both sides has a split that started at the bottom and went as high as possible in order to still offer any protection from prying eyes of whatever secret she was hiding from Victoria. I loved this dress. I had to uncross my legs and adjust my crotch to keep the circulation from being cut off, and I'd only seen the front.

She stepped up onto the platform in front of the mirror giving me a view of the back of the dress. The back was nearly non-existent. There were a few pieces of ribbon low on the back continuing the look of the basket around her waist, but the straps from her shoulders divided into three ribbons at the back and covered only minimal bits of skin, leaving it virtually bare for my hand to rest on her skin as we moved together. Hell, I didn't care if she wanted this dress or not. I was buying it even if she only wore it for me in our apartment.

When she turned to face me her mouth turned into a perfect smile. "What do you think?"

My mouth went dry. This was an easy question soldier. If you can't answer this, she'll increase the torture until you do. I cleared my throat and sat forward, grimacing at the pressure it put on my crotch in its heightened state of attention. "I like it…a lot."

"The problem," she said stepping down and walking slowly toward me, "is that the straps on the top and the cut out back won't allow me to wear a bra." With that she reached behind her and unhooked the delicate piece of lace before pulling her arms free and then dropping it to the pile of clothes she'd abandoned earlier.

Dear God, she was trying to give me a stroke. There was nothing between me and paradise, but a pattern of woven ribbon made from blue silk. I was pulled from my musing when I realized she was continuing to stalk towards me with plenty of swing in her hips and she was talking.

She stopped right in front of me, used her hands to pull the dress over her mile long legs, and then straddled my lap. "So if I'm going to let you spend this much money on a dress, then I have to be sure it's something you want me to wear when meeting your family. Do you think this how you want them to see me?"

I nodded that it was. "And what will they think when they see me in this dress?" She asked, running her hands through my hair and gripping tightly at the back.

That tiny bit of pain from her pulling my hair brought me back to reality and I found my voice. "They'll see a beautiful woman who is both a proper lady and a girl who can have fun. They will see your confidence and your comfort in who you are. They'll see me happier than they've ever thought I could be, and they will know from the look on my face that I'm utterly devoted to you."

"No," she corrected me in the middle of my speech. "The look on your face may speak of devotion, but it will also be a threat that if anyone tries to approach me they may get their jaw handed back to them by your fist."

It was true; there was no point in denying it. The guys at RangeMan were one thing, but I knew the lowlifes I was related to would try to hit on her from the moment that dress entered the banquet hall. I had no intention of allowing that to happen. I shrugged in lieu of a response.

She managed to get up and was dressed back in her clothes entirely too quickly for my tastes. But it did appear that she was going to get the dress I liked, so I didn't complain. It took her longer to find a pair of shoes that she liked, but eventually the very patient salesman brought out something that she thought was perfect and I got them to the register before she could change her mind again.

Apparently I had done a good job of portraying myself as a supportive shopping mate because after she loaded up her arms so full of lingerie I couldn't tell what she had, she grabbed my shirt and brought me into the dressing room with her as she again commanded me to sit still and give her my opinion.

I ran out of adjectives and after thirty minutes of watching her slip in and out of slinky numbers, I finally snapped. I picked up all the merchandise, even the large pile that hadn't been tried on yet, and let myself out of the dressing room, throwing it all on the counter in front of a very surprised clerk. "Quickly," I bit out feeling a sense of urgency to get her home as fast as possible before I shot off just from the memory of seeing that last pair of panties. Hell, they didn't even have a crotch in them. The only reason she would wear something like that was if she wanted me to take her right away, and that was precisely what I planned on doing.

I signed the charge slip and grabbed the large pink bag she held out for me, turning around to find a very amused Stephanie standing behind me trying to look oblivious to what she had started.

We got in the truck and I barely spoke three words as I drove us to her apartment. It was further away, but after the torture I'd just endured I couldn't worry about being quiet or the possibility of being interrupted by the guys.

I all but ripped the door off the hinges trying to get us in. She tried to cover her laugh but failed miserably. Of course the moment the door closed behind us she ceased to make sounds of amusement and allowed me to press her against the door, covering her mouth with my own. I kissed her with a passion I didn't know I had. Everything inside of me wanted her naked and writhing under me right now, but I tried to hold back.

I wanted to enjoy the feel of this moment. The way she went from angry to playful to this was a memory I didn't want to lose in my lust hazed mind. This was the woman I was going to spend my entire life loving. She didn't know it yet, but at some point during our trip to New York I planned on making it official and asking her to marry me. It was unnecessary, as we were already as bonded as two people could be, but I wanted every level of our relationship to be visible to the world. I couldn't allow there to be any doubt about who she belonged to.

I slowed my pace when that thought crossed my mind. This was my future bride in my arms, and she deserved to be treasured and adored, not taken just barely across the threshold of her apartment. This would one day be the mother of my children and she should have every effort made to insure her pleasure above my own.

With that thought I picked her up and carried her gently to the bedroom. She had a strange expression on her face, so I raised an eyebrow in curiosity. Luckily she knew what I was asking and answered, "I don't know what thought just passed through your mind, but something changed."

I nodded unwilling – unable – to tell her the strength of the thoughts passing through my heart and mind right now. "I liked it," she finally confessed, holding out her arms to me and closing her eyes. She was surrendering to me and trusting that I would love her and shelter her.

Three months ago I would have laughed at anyone who dared to say I would one day think of making Stephanie my wife. But today I knew there would be no one else for me ever. My body, my heart, and my soul knew it and as soon as I could get a ring on her finger, the world would know it too.

There is a time for stepping out in blind faith, risking your heart, and hoping that the person you give it to accepts that gift. But there was nothing blind about my faith in Stephanie. She had proven herself to me day after day, and I knew with no doubts that my faith in her was founded and solid. She was everything to me, everything I needed, everything a woman should be.

She was my Bella ~ forever.


	23. Author's Note

_Author's Note: This most certainly should have been at the bottom of chapter 22 but it didn't make it for some reason. Please excuse my bad form for adding it as a separate chapter. _

I don't believe any story is written entirely alone and there are a few people that I must thank. Fredda (Rangergirl1234) you deserve more than a toss out mention at the top of each chapter to show my appreciation for your work as the beta on my stories of late. You are such an encourager and a positive source of feedback that it makes sending my rough work to you a real joy. Thank you.

And to all the readers who took the time to send me reviews and messages after every chapter, I can't tell you how much it means to see your words in my in-box. I use your suggestions and your questions to shape what happens next so I feel that you deserve a special show of gratitude as well for the encouragement you provide for me to keep typing.

I'm taking a few days off to try and clear my head of Vince (my body is fighting it because my mind is full of images of Vince that it's reluctant to let go of), but I'll be back on Monday with a new Merry Man story. Hopefully you'll all come along for the ride.


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